


God Bless the Child

by dangerouslytremendousperson



Series: Hard Way Home [1]
Category: Wynonna Earp (TV)
Genre: Alcohol Abuse/Alcoholism, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Angst, Character Study, Complete, Doc Holliday & Nicole Haught Friendship, Established Waverly Earp/Nicole Haught, F/F, F/M, Future Fic, Hints of Wynonna/Mercedes, I think we've reached novella length at this point, Implied/Referenced Alcohol Abuse/Alcoholism, Mother-Daughter Relationship, Sister-Sister Relationship, Slow Burn, Sorry Not Sorry, Supportive Earp Siblings (Wynonna Earp), Waverly Earp & Doc Holliday Friendship, Wynnona Earp Raises Alice Michelle, Wynonna Earp & Nicole Haught Friendship, Wynonna Earp-centric
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-09-21
Updated: 2019-02-02
Packaged: 2019-07-15 03:34:01
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 13
Words: 55,996
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16054652
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/dangerouslytremendousperson/pseuds/dangerouslytremendousperson
Summary: Set Post Curse.  Alice Michelle returns home, but Wynonna's transition from demon killer to mom isn't exactly a smooth one.  It's stressful for all involved, especially for Wynonna herself.  Can Wynonna learn to be a good mom?  Can she learn to forgive herself for not being there for Alice?  Also contains a fair amount of WayHaught...because I can't help myself. *Now Finally Complete*





	1. Chapter 1

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> For those of you just joining us, I started this work, around mid-season three and that's where it officially diverges with show canon. Dolls did die, Doc did get turned into a vampire, Nicole was in Purgatory at age six for the massacre, but no Garden of Eden stuff and the Earp Curse is not broken by Bulshar but rather by Wynonna. This is a future fic of course and to be perfectly honest the mechanics of how the Curse was ended are not super important to this story. There are continuing mentions of the supernatural later in this work, but by in large the supernatural doesn't play a huge role in this story. It is mostly a story about Wynonna learning to be a mom...and cute WayHaught moments because why not?

Them that's got shall get  
Them that's not shall lose  
So the Bible said and it still is news

Mama may have, papa may have  
But God bless the child that's got his own  
That's got his own

 

The flickers of the orange flames reflected in Wynonna’s eyes. The screams of the last revenant slowly died. Wynonna glanced down at her hand. Peacemaker glowed blue. Wynonna held it up as the light intensified. It seemed to be saying, “Good job,” then it flickered out.

“Is that it?” Waverly asked hesitantly, “It’s over?”

“I think so,” Wynonna said, as her baby sister launched herself at Wynonna and hugged her.

“Good job Earp,” Nicole said with a smile.

“Congratulations…Are congratulations appropriate here? I mean we broke the curse, but you know...” Jeremy was silenced by Nicole putting her hand on his shoulder, “Right, shut up Jeremy. Congratulations,” He said.

Wynonna couldn’t help smiling a little despite herself. Her eyes then landed on Doc. He said nothing but merely nodded his head and tipped his hat. Wynonna returned his nod. 

“This means…This means she can come home, right? Alice can come home,” Waverly said her arms still wrapped around Wynonna.

“Yeah, Baby Girl, it means she can come home.”

***  
The stairs creaked under Wynonna’s feet as she walked down to the basement of Shorty’s. She found Doc at the bottom of the stairs a clipboard in hand. He glanced up and tossed the clipboard on a table as she reached the bottom of the stairs.

“Wynonna, to what do I owe the pleasure,” he asked.

“I talked to Gus. The week after next, they’ll be here week after next,” She replied.

“I am overjoyed,” he said with a smile that didn’t quite reach his eyes.

“Are you?” she asked coldly.

“Why would I not be?”

Wynonna ignored the question and glanced around the room. There were cases of booze open as if he was counting the bottles. “Doing some inventory?” she asked.

“I am. It appears we still have an excess of banana liquor. Can’t hardly give the stuff away,” he said with a shrug.

“Just got in the entrepreneurial spirit, did we?” Wynonna asked as she crossed her arms.

“Just making sure things are in order,” he replied.

“For whoever runs Shorty’s when you’re gone?” she asked pointedly. Doc didn’t answer. He rubbed his hand over his mouth and simply stared at her. “Come on Doc, did you think Jeremy was going to keep his trap shut? I know he’s been helping you try to find a cure for being a vampire. And I know not one of those potential cures is in the Ghost River Triangle.” She paused and then said with a slight hitch in her voice, “When were you going to tell me? Were you going to tell me? Or were you just going to skulk away in the night?”

“I was going to tell you,” Doc said as he stepped forward and reached out his hand for her, but Wynonna stepped back away from him and shook her head. He stopped and lowered his hand.

“Your daughter’s coming home,” she said blinking back tears, “You’re going to leave now?”

“She is the reason I must. I am not fit to lay eyes on her,” he said.

“Whose fault is that?” 

“It is none but my own.” Doc stepped forward again; this time Wynonna did not retreat. “I am sorry Wynonna.” He reached up and cupped her face in his hands. “I am sorry I underestimated you. I am sorry I did not believe that you would break the curse. I was weak and scared, and I thought it would fall to me to protect our daughter. I was so very wrong, and I am so very sorry for it.”

Tears fell from Wynonna’s eyes in earnest now. “Please don’t leave.” Wynonna Earp never begged but she begged Doc now. Not to leave her. Not to leave her and their daughter. Not to rip her heart out again.

“I must,” He replied.

She raised her hands and pushed him away from her, “Goddamn you, John Henry Holiday.”

“He already has,” He replied.

Wynonna shook her head and turned to leave. She stopped at the bottom of the stairs and turned back around. She wiped the tears away with the back of her hand. 

Doc stood with his arms slightly open, “Wynonna, please try to understand…”

“She sent me a picture, Gus did…of Alice,” She said cutting him off. She pulled her phone out and held it up for him to see. The picture of a tow-headed little girl with bright blue eyes and a wide smile graced the screen.

He studied it for a moment and smiled. “She is as beautiful as her Mama. Wherever did the blonde hair come from,” he asked.

“I had blonde hair as a kid,” Wynonna said with a shrug. “She has your eyes.”

“That she does,” He said.

“This is what you’re leaving, Doc,” she said.

“I will return…”

Wynonna shook her head, “Don’t make promises you can’t keep.”

“I am not,” he said firmly as he stepped forward and gripped her shoulders, “I swear to you, Wynonna. I will find a cure. I will return to you and Alice.”

Wynonna kissed him. She let her hands run over his jaw and up through his hair. She pressed herself against him. Memorizing the feeling of his body pressed against hers. She breathed in his smell and memorized his taste. When she was done she broke the kiss. She stared into his eyes. He started to lean in to kiss her again, but she stopped him by pressing her hand against his chest. 

“Goodbye, Doc,” she said sadly.

***  
Nicole watched her girlfriend get ready for bed. Technically she was reading, but she hadn’t actually comprehended a line of the book since Waverly had started changing her clothes. They had been together for years, but Waverly was still captivating. 

“So, what do you think?” Waverly asked as she turned to Nicole and pulled her hair out of the collar of her pajamas.

“Um…Yep…Sure…Sounds good,” Nicole quickly said as she realized that she had been so wrapped up in watching Waverly undress that she hadn’t heard a word she had said.

Waverly frowned and put her hands on her hips. “Were you paying attention to me at all, or is that book just that engrossing?”

“Baby, I was paying attention to you, I just wasn’t really paying attention to what you were saying…sorry,” Nicole said with a sheepish smile.

Waverly wrinkled up her face in a way that Nicole found to be possibly the cutest thing on earth. “I suppose you are forgiven, as long as you were at least looking at me.” She walked over to the bed and leaned in to give Nicole a kiss.

“I was definitely looking at you,” Nicole said as they broke the kiss.

Waverly climbed into bed next to Nicole. “But seriously, I think we should go into the big city and pick out something special for Alice. A stuffed animal or a doll, or something. I think it would be nice for her to have something from her Aunt Waverly and Aunt Nicole.”

“Well, Aunt Waverly anyway. I don’t know how Wynonna would feel about Alice calling me Aunt Nicole,” Nicole replied. Wynonna and Nicole certainly got along better than they had when Nicole and Waverly had first started dating, but she still doubted that Wynonna would be thrilled at the idea of “Sheriff Bossy-Pants,” being called “aunt” by Alice. But then again Wynonna would have to be sober enough to care, which she hadn’t been in days.

Waverly frowned again. “But you are, Aunt Nicole. If I’m Aunt Waverly, then you’re Aunt Nicole. We’re a package deal.”

Nicole kissed Waverly. She loved Waves for believing that. “We’ll cross that bridge when we come to it. She can call me whatever she wants,” Nicole replied.

“Ok. So, do you want to go into the city may be the day after tomorrow?”

“Um…I’ll have to check to see if I can. I can’t remember the patrol schedule off hand,” Nicole replied.

“Didn’t you hire deputies, so you wouldn’t have to patrol as much?” Waverly asked.

“I hired deputies to protect Purgatory, the slightly less time in a freezing patrol car is an added bonus. I’m still the sheriff, Baby.”

“I know I know, but Alice will be here soon. I’d like to have something for her,” Waverly said.

Nicole didn’t reply but started staring at her book intently. She didn’t really want to say what she was thinking to Waverly. She knew it would upset her.

“Are you at least going to check?”

“Um…yeah, I guess so,” Nicole said.

Waverly narrowed her eyes at Nicole. “What’s up?”

“What do you mean?”

“I mean you’re going to burn a hole in that book if you stare at it any harder. You’re not telling me something, I can tell. So, spill it, Haught,” Waverly said.

Nicole sighed and closed the book. She shifted in the bed, so she was facing Waverly. Waverly mirrored her position. 

“About Alice coming here,” She paused and took a deep breath. She loved Waverly. She even loved Wynonna despite Wynonna driving her crazy at times. She didn’t want to hurt either one of them, but her conscience also wouldn’t let her not say what she had been thinking for a while. “I don’t know if it’s a good idea.”

“What are you talking about?” Waverly said, surprised.

“I’m talking about, maybe it’s not the best time.”

“We broke the curse, Wynonna broke the curse. Of course, it’s time for her to come home.”

“Wynonna’s been through a lot. She’s not the heir anymore and she needs to figure out what that means for her. Plus, Doc up and disappearing, I don’t think waiting a few more months will hurt.”

“A few more months!” Waverly exclaimed. “It’s been four years. Wynonna broke the curse so she could be with her daughter, she shouldn’t have to wait any longer.”

“I just don’t know if this is the best place for Alice right now,” Nicole said with another sigh.

“Of course it is. This is her home. Her mother is here, her aunts are here. All the people who love her. There’s no other place she should be.”

Nicole reached out and took Waverly’s hands in her own. “Where’s Wynonna right now?”

“I don’t know,” Waverly said as she shook her head, “Out.”

“Out drinking, right?”

“Maybe,” Waverly said with a shrug, “You know Wynonna.”

“I can’t remember the last time I saw her when she wasn’t at least hung over,” Nicole said.

“Like you said, she’s had a hard time lately. I’m sure when Alice gets here…” Waverly’s voice trailed off and she looked down.

Nicole squeezed her hands and said, “Baby look at me,” Waverly raised her eyes back up to Nicole, “We both grew up in houses with,” she paused as if looking for the right word, “less than ideal parents. Do you think you can watch Alice grow up in a house like that?”

“Wynonna isn’t Ward Earp,” Waverly said indignantly.

“Of course not, Waves, but she seems determined to crawl into the bottom of a bottle of whiskey and not come out. Could you imagine living with a parent who was more interested in a bottle than you?”

“I don’t have to imagine,” Waverly said softly, then added, “You weren’t there when Alice was born. You didn’t see Wynonna with her. You didn’t see her have to give her up. It broke part of her, Nicole. I think the only thing that’s going to fix it is Alice coming home.”

“Fixing your Mama, that’s a lot to put on the shoulders of a little girl. What if it doesn’t fix it, Waves?”

Waverly opened and closed her mouth several times then finally said, “I don’t know.”

“I know you love your sister, Waves, but we need to think about what’s best for Alice if Wynonna can’t right now,” Nicole said then she added, “We don’t have to do anything this second. Just think about it, okay?”

Waverly nodded.

“You’re not mad, are you?” Nicole asked.

“That you’re worried about Alice?” Waverly said, “No, how could I be mad at that?”

Nicole gave Waverly a slight smile of relief. She couldn’t stand the idea of Waverly being mad at her. She leaned forward and kissed her forehead. “Like I said we don’t have to do anything tonight. Let’s get some sleep.”

Waverly nodded, and they slipped under the covers. Nicole wrapped her arms around Waverly. She could practically hear the thoughts of the younger woman. She never wanted to be the reason Waverly lost sleep, but she also knew that Waverly needed to look a Wynonna with a more critical eye at times. All she could really do is be there for her.

***

Nicole stood behind Waverly and pressed a kiss against Waverly’s neck as the smaller woman did the dishes.

“You’re distracting me,” Waverly said with a laugh.

“Do you mind?” Nicole asked.

Waverly turned and planted a kiss on Nicole’s lips. “Nope,” she said.

“Is it weird I find the dish gloves, strangely sexy?”

“Kinda, but I think I can live with a cleaning fetish,” Waverly said with a wink.

“It’s not a fetish!” Nicole said.

“Whatever you say, Sheriff,” Waverly said with a smile as she turned back to the dishes. 

“Hey, Baby,” Nicole said as she ran her hand over Waverly’s back, “Did you think about what we talked about last night?”

“It’s all I’ve thought about,” Waverly said without turning around, “I just don’t know what I think yet. I’m not sure you’re right…but I know you’re not wrong.”

“Okay,” Nicole said, “We can talk more when I get home if you want?” Nicole turned and picked her jacket off the back of one of the kitchen chairs and shrugged it on.

“Yeah, I think that would be best,” Waverly replied, but then turned around, “Do you think you can pick up some milk and eggs on the way home. We’re almost out?”

“Sure, Baby,” Nicole said. She gave Waverly a peck. “See you later, I love you.”

“Be safe, love you too,” Waverly replied as Nicole made her way out of the kitchen.

Just then Wynonna staggered into the kitchen. She was obviously hung over.

“Coffee,” she mumbled.

“’Morning Wynonna,” Nicole said as she passed her.

“Why are you so frickin loud Haught?” Wynonna asked as she winced.

Nicole glanced over her shoulder at Waverly, who motioned for Nicole to go ahead and go. She didn’t really want to leave her girlfriend to deal with her drunk sister, but Waverly was better at handling Wynonna than anyone. She sighed and left the house.

***  
Waverly placed the coffee down on the table in front of Wynonna who was holding her head. Waverly had rarely seen Wynonna hungover. Usually, despite drinking like someone twice her size, Wynonna showed little lingering effects the next morning. She had seen her hungover more in the last week than she could remember seeing her, her entire life. It made Waverly wonder exactly how much she had been drinking each night.

“Thanks,” Wynonna mumbled and took a sip. She then stood and started opening cabinets.

“You usually take it black, are you looking for sugar,” Waverly asked.

Wynonna pulled a bottle of whiskey out of the cabinet, “Was thinking I’d take it Irish, this morning.”

Waverly frowned and reached out and pulled the bottle out of her sister’s hand. 

“Hey,” Wynonna said.

“Are you kidding me?” Waverly asked angerly.

“Just a little hair of the dog, Waves. Chill out.” Wynonna shrugged.

An anger that Waverly didn’t know she had inside of her came bubbling up. She had seen her sister do a lot of stupid things over the years. Wynonna was habitually drunk. She slept with inappropriate men. She risked her life doing stupid things, but never would Waverly think she would do anything to risk being with Alice.

“Alice is coming in five days,” Waverly said as she held up five fingers in Wynonna’s face to accentuate her point. 

Wynonna pushed her hand away. “I am aware.”

“Then what are you doing?”

“Getting my fun in before I’m saddled with a kid,” Wynonna said with a shrug.

“Saddled? Saddled with Alice? That’s what you’re going to be? That’s how you feel about your daughter finally getting to be home, it’s a burden?”

Wynonna looked down at the floor. She couldn’t meet Waverly’s eyes.

“God, Nicole was right.”

“And what exactly was Sheriff Tight-Ass, right about?” Wynonna asked indignantly as she looked up.

“That Alice shouldn’t be here, with you…” her voice trailed off and she motioned up and down towards Wynonna, “like this.”

“You tell Nicole, to mind her own fucking business. I couldn’t care less what she or that stick up her ass thinks about me. She has no right to talk about me and my kid,” Wynonna said pointing her finger at Waverly.

“She’s worried about Alice, and thank God someone is. I didn’t see it before because I wanted her to come home, but,” Waverly paused. She knew her sister was scared. She acted out when she was scared, but Waverly also knew it couldn’t go on like this. “I love you Wynonna, and I know you’re afraid, and I know you miss Doc. But this has to stop.”

“What’s ‘this’?” Wynonna asked.

“The drinking, first of all. The staying out all night. The being reckless. You’re going to be a mom, Wynonna.”

“So what? I should go out and get twin sets and get ready to join the PTA. That’s not me, Waves,” Wynonna replied.

Waverly shook her head. “No that’s not it. I won’t let Alice grow up in a house like we did,” she said.

“What the hell does that mean?”

Waverly took a deep breath. It was hard for her to be tough with Wynonna. It was hard for Waverly to be tough with anyone most of the time, but especially with Wynonna. 

“It means, I won’t let her grow up in a house with a drunk for a parent. I won’t stand by and watch you screw up her life along with your own. Get your shit together Wynonna or I call Gus and let her know not to bring Alice here,” Waverly said as she placed the whiskey bottle down on the counter next to Wynonna. “The choice is yours.”

Waverly turned and walked out of the kitchen without letting Wynonna respond. She made her way out of the house and into the barn. The morning air was cool, but she for once didn’t really mind being cold. It gave her something to think about other than Wynonna and Alice.

She wished she would find Nicole in the barn like she had years ago after the fight with Willa. She would give anything for Nicole to kiss her and call her, “Baby,” right then. But Nicole was at work and Waverly was alone in the barn with her thoughts. She hoped she had done the right thing.

***  
Wynonna sat at the kitchen table the bottle of whiskey in front of her. She knew in her heart that Waverly was right. Which by extension meant that Nicole was right, which really chapped Wynonna’s ass. Either way, she knew she couldn’t be a Mom when she was three sheets to the wind half the time. The problem was she wasn’t sure that she could be a mom even when she wasn’t drunk.

She hadn’t wanted to get pregnant that was for damn sure. The curse had made sure there was an heir. It hadn’t been her choice and for quite a while Wynonna had resented the tiny person who was sharing her body. And then Alice was born and she saw her hands and her feet and her face and Wynonna knew she would never love anything more than that little girl in her life.

But loving her wasn’t enough, was it? Wynonna didn’t know how to be a mom. She hadn’t had very good role models. Gus was probably the best, but Wynonna had spent so much time running away and being angry at that time that she certainly didn’t learn any parenting lessons.

Besides, how could Alice ever forgive her? She had sent her away. Granted it was to keep her safe, but she had still sent her away. Wynonna would be hard-pressed to forgive someone who abandoned her, how could she expect her daughter to forgive her. Maybe it would be best for Wynonna to let Waverly call Gus, hell maybe she should do it herself.

She pulled out her phone. The picture of Alice came up. She was a beautiful little girl. She did have Doc’s eyes. But she also had Wynonna’s smile. And there was something behind those eyes, a mischievousness that Wynonna recognized in herself.

She put down the phone and stared at the bottle again.

***

Waverly walked back into the kitchen sometime later. She wasn’t sure what she expected to find, but Wynonna sitting at the kitchen table with an empty bottle in front of her wasn’t it.

“You drank it all?” Waverly asked as she crossed her arms.

“I poured it down the sink,” Wynonna replied.

Waverly’s face softened, and she went over to her sister and hugged her. “I love you Wynonna,” she said.

“I love you too, Baby Girl,” Wynonna said as she returned the hug, then she added, “I don’t know if I can do this.”

“What?” Waverly asked.

“Be a mom. What kind of mom am I going to be Waves?”

Waverly stepped back from her sister and looked her in the eye. “Wynonna if you are half as good at being a mom, as you were at being a big sister than Alice is going to be the luckiest kid in the world.”  
Wynonna smiled, but she didn’t look like she quite believed Waverly. “I hope you’re right, Waves, I hope you’re right.”


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Alice arrives home, but the homecoming isn't all that Wynonna expected it to be.

They arranged to delay Alice’s arrival by a few weeks. They had told Gus some story about not quite finishing Alice’s room, but Wynonna doubted that she believed them. Aunt Gus was always pretty good at seeing through Wynonna’s bullshit.

Now Wynonna had been as dry as a nun’s hoo-ha for the past month and the day of Alice’s arrival was here. Wynonna really wished she could have a drink. It would make the entire day just a little easier, but she had promised Waverly. Hell, she had promised herself.

Wynonna rarely spoke about Ward Earp’s love of the bottle. She loved her father despite all his faults, and it seemed more than a little tacky in her mind, to talk shit about a man she had shot in the back, even if it had been an accident. But that didn’t mean she didn’t remember the drunken yelling. The nights he was too drunk even to care if his kids had eaten, leaving dinner up to an eleven-year-old. The walking around the house on eggshells scared she might wake her hungover father up and incur his wrath.

Waverly was right that no child should grow up like that. And she would make damn sure Alice never did. Alice would have a happy childhood, free of demons-both the revenant and parental variety.

Wynonna paced in the living room. Every few moments she looked for dust in the distance signaling a car arriving. She should have just picked Alice and Gus up at the airport, but Perry had insisted on paying not only for a flight home for them but a car to drive them from the airport to the homestead. Considering how cramped both her truck and Waverly’s jeep were, it would have made for an uncomfortable ride. 

Waverly was in the kitchen finishing making cookies. At every sound, she called out to Wynonna, “Is that them?” Wynonna would, in turn, call back, “Not yet.”  
Finally, Wynonna heard the unmistakable sound of tires kicking up the gravel on the driveway. She looked out the window and a black SUV drove up towards the house. Wynonna called out, “They're here, Baby Girl.”

Waverly dashed in from the kitchen, Nicole following behind. “Oh my gosh, I can’t believe it.” She glanced around the room. “I wish you had at least let me put a ‘Welcome Home’ sign up,” she said with a sigh.

Waverly had wanted to have a party for Alice’s arrival. If Wynonna had let her, the room would have been filled with balloons and streamers, and they’d be wearing stupid hats. Wynonna had put the kibosh on that plan pretty quick and to her surprise, Nicole had agreed with her. So, they had all agreed to a low-key welcome home; the only concession was Waverly making a big dinner…which was vegan, so Wynonna was sure it was going to be disgusting.

Wynonna took a couple of deep breaths and then opened the door. She stepped out onto the porch just as Gus was getting out of the passenger side of the SUV. Gus looked older than Wynona remembered her, but then again, she was older, almost five years older. They were all almost five years older.

Waverly came out of the house and immediately went down off the porch and gave Gus a big hug. “Oh my God, it’s so good to see you,” she said.

“Waverly, you’re still pretty as a peach,” Gus said as she hugged Waverly back. They separated, and Gus turned her attention to Wynonna. “Hello Wynonna,” she said.

“Gus,” Wynonna said as she came down off the porch as well. “You look good.”

“Bullshit,” Gus said, “I look like an old woman. And you look like you’ve been ridden hard and put away wet.”

Wynonna smirked. “Always with the compliments, Gus. How’s Alice?”

“She didn’t much like flying. She fell asleep in the car, though. Still asleep back there,” Gus replied. 

The driver of the car interrupted, “Where should I put your bags, Ma’am?” he asked. 

“I’ll show you,” Nicole replied from behind Wynonna. To be honest, Wynonna hadn’t even noticed her following them out of the house.

“Should we wake her up? Or let her sleep?” Waverly asked.

“She can’t live in the car,” Gus replied as she turned to the SUV and opened the back door.

Wynonna caught the first glimpse of her daughter in almost five years. Her blonde hair was covering her face, but she could see her thumb stuck in the corner of her mouth.

Gus reached into the car and unbelted the child’s seat, “Wake up sleepy head,” she said as she lifted the girl out of the car and set her down in front of her mother.

Alice Michelle Earp looked around at the women who were staring at her and promptly turned and clung to Gus’s leg. 

“Alice say hello to your Mama,” Gus said. The little girl shook her head and hid behind Gus’s leg. “Alice, say hello,” Gus repeated.

“I’m shy,” Alice replied.

“Since when?” Gus asked, “Alice don’t be rude, say hello.” The girl once again shook her head and buried her face in Gus’s leg, “Alice..” Gus started to say again.

“Gus stop, it’s okay,” Wynonna interrupted, “She doesn’t have to say hello.” 

“Well,” Waverly said as she stepped closer to Gus and Alice and stooped down, so she was eye level with the little girl, “You don’t have to say hi to me either, but I’m your Aunt Waverly. I’m very happy you’re here Alice.”

Alice peaked her head slightly out from Gus’s leg and gave a quick smile before ducking back behind the older woman’s leg.

“Do you like cookies?” Waverly asked the girl, “I made a whole bunch of cookies, and I need someone to help me eat them. Do you think you could help me?” Alice finally stepped out from behind Gus’s leg and nodded her head at Waverly.

“What kind of cookies?” Alice asked.

“What’s your favorite kind?” Waverly replied.

“Chocolate chip.”

“Well, that’s perfect because they’re chocolate chip cookies,” Waverly said enthusiastically. “Do you think you want to go in the house and try them?”

Alice nodded, “Okay…Aunt Gus come too?”

“Of course,” Waverly said, “Let’s all go ok?”

“Come on darling,” Gus said as she took the little girl’s hand and started to lead her towards the house. 

Wynonna followed Gus, Alice, and Waverly into the homestead. They filed into the kitchen and Waverly placed plates of cookies on the table. Alice attempted to pull out a chair but struggled with it. Wynonna grabbed the back of the chair and said, “Here kiddo, let me help you.”

“I can do it,” Alice said. Wynonna didn’t know that a five-year-old could glare, but she could swear that the little girl glared at her. Wynonna stepped back and watched as the little girl pulled out the chair and climbed up into it. She then began munching on the cookies in front of her.

Nicole appeared a few moments later after showing the driver where he could drop the bags. She greeted Gus, “Mrs. McCready, it’s good to see you again.”

“If you don’t call me Mrs. McCready, then I won’t call you Sherriff Haught,” Gus said, “Just plain Gus is fine.”

Nicole smiled and said, “Alright, Gus.” She then turned her attention to little Alice. “And this must be the famous Alice Michelle. I’m Nicole,” she said with a little wave to the girl.

Alice waved back. 

Wynonna wished it didn’t piss her off, but it did. She wasn’t that bitter about Alice responding to Waverly, because everyone loved Waverly, but for her to respond to Nicole without a bit of prompting really stuck in her craw. She knew it was petty and unkind and that it wasn’t Nicole’s fault, but it pissed her off anyway.

Gus, Waverly, and Nicole all sat around the table making small talk. They talked about their lives over the past five years, leaving out anything revenant related or anything traumatic. Waverly told Gus about Jeremy and Robin and how she had been starting to try and open a “Ghost River Triangle Historical Society.” Nicole talked about getting more funding for the Sherriff’s department by applying for grants.

Wynonna didn’t say much she just watched Alice. The little girl was engrossed by her cookies and didn’t notice Wynonna staring at her. Wynonna studied everything about the girl. Her tiny hands, the way she licked the cookies before shoving them in her mouth, the way she chewed. Everything she did seemed like magic to Wynonna.

“Alice tell your Mama, and your Aunt Waverly and Nicole what you like best in school,” Gus said to the little girl.

“Storytime,” Alice replied between bites of cookies.

“Her pre-k teacher said she was very smart for her age,” Gus told them.

“Of course, she is,” Waverly said with a grin and a wink at the little girl, “She’s my niece.”

“Well, she certainly didn’t get it from me. What’s your favorite book, Alice?” Wynonna asked. 

The little girl looked at her but didn’t say anything.

“Alice Michelle, did I raise you to be rude?” Gus said.

“No,” Alice replied.

“Then answer your mother.”

Wynonna waved her hand. “It’s ok; she doesn’t have to answer me.”

“It’s not ok,” Gus said, “Answer your mother, Alice.”

“Goodnight Moon,” Alice said.

“Oh, I loved that book when I was your age,” Nicole said, “I always thought it was silly that there was a cow jumping over the moon though. Do cows jump over the moon?”

Alice laughed and shook her head, “No cows don’t jump over the moon. They’re too heavy.”

“That’s right they are too heavy. You are very smart Alice,” Waverly said.

The conversation continued like that for quite a while. Wynonna didn’t talk much. She feared upsetting Alice…actually she feared every time Alice didn’t answer her or looked afraid of her. It was like a tiny knife in her heart.

After a while, Gus took Alice into the living room to color as Waverly finished up dinner and Nicole cleared the table. Wynonna stayed behind in the kitchen rather than following Gus and Alice for a moment.

“This isn’t going well is it?” she asked her younger sister.

“It’s going fine,” Waverly replied as she stirred something on the stove.

“She won’t even look at me, Waves!”

“Kids are like dogs; they smell fear. She’s just reacting to the vibes you’re putting out there, Wynonna,” Nicole said as she deposited the plates the cookies had been on in the sink.

“Kids are like dogs, huh? A regular child psychologist right here. Remind me where you got your degree?” Wynonna said sarcastically.

Nicole didn’t reply she just held her hands up and shook her head. “I’m going to color with Alice, unless you need help, Baby?”

“No, I’m good,” Waverly said. When Nicole had left, Waverly whacked Wynonna on the arm.

“What was that for?”

“Don’t be nasty to Nicole, she’s trying to help,” Waverly replied.

“Forgive me if I don’t want Sheriff Haught-Pants’ child-rearing advice. Besides, ‘Kids are like dogs?’ What the hell is that even supposed to mean?”

“Wynonna stop hiding in here and go out and color with your daughter,” Waverly said.

“I’m not hiding,” Waverly raised an eyebrow at Wynonna, “Okay, I’m kind of hiding.”

“Well, stop and go out there.”

“Okay, okay,” Wynonna said and made her way out into the living room. Alice and Nicole sat on the floor with paper and crayons strewn around them. Gus sat on the couch. “Can I join?” Wynonna asked as she sat down on the floor.

Alice shrugged. “Okay.”

Wynonna let out a breath that she didn’t know she was holding as Alice pushed a piece of paper towards her and Wynonna picked up a crayon. She sort of doodled on the paper but she really was just watching Alice.

A few minutes later Nicole announced she was going to see if Waverly needed help in the kitchen and left Wynonna and Alice on the floor.

“Whatcha drawing?” Wynonna asked Alice.

“My house. Aunt Gus says I don’t live there anymore,” Alice replied.

“Do you miss your house?”

Alice nodded, “I don’t want to not live there anymore.”

Wynonna stared at her daughter. Had she done the right thing in bringing her here?

 

***  
Dinner had gone alright. Alice had been surprisingly chatty with Waverly and Nicole. Wynonna had been fairly silent throughout the meal. After dinner, Gus had brought Alice up to her room. They decided it would be best if Gus put her to bed, though Wynonna stood in the hall and listened to her being red ‘Good Night Moon’ with tears in her eyes.

A little later the adults sat in the kitchen drinking coffee.

“Sorry, you have to bunk with me tonight, Gus. We’ll figure out better room arrangements soon,” Wynonna said.

“Don’t bother, it’ll be fine for the time I’ll be here,” Gus replied.

“What do you mean for the time you’ll be here?’ Waverly asked, “Aren’t you staying?”

“No, I’ll stay for a bit to get Alice settled, but then I’m going home.”

“This is your home,” Wynonna said.

“It’s been five years, Wynonna. I know it’s hard for you to believe, but I have a life,” Gus said as she sipped her coffee.

“What are you getting laid, Gus?” Wynonna asked mockingly.

“Wynonna!” Waverly exclaimed.

“And what if I am?”

“Um…I think that maybe we should go to bed, Waves,” Nicole said as she stood up and held her hand out to Waverly. Waverly looked back and forth between Wynonna and Gus and opened and closed her mouth several times. “Baby let’s let them talk, okay,” Nicole added softly. 

“Okay,” Waverly said hesitantly but took Nicole’s hand and allowed herself to be led out of the kitchen leaving Gus and Wynonna alone.

“So you’re just going to abandon her?” Wynonna asked.

“Wynonna you asked me to take Alice and keep her safe. I left Waverly, and I left you, and everything else I had known, and I did it. And I was happy to do it. Now you have asked me to return her to you, and I have. “ She paused and took a deep breath, “I know you don’t believe me, but I love you Wynonna. I don’t always like you, but I always love you. I love Waverly, and I love that little girl upstairs,” She said as she pointed towards the ceiling, “And I could not love any of you more if you were my own children. But there needs to come a time when I am done raising Earps.”

“And this is the time?”

“It is. Unless you want me to take Alice with me when I go.”

Wynonna stood up from the table and pointed at Gus, “You are not taking my daughter from me.”

“Then it is settled then,” Gus stood up, “I’m going to bed. It’s been a long day for everyone. I suggest you come to bed soon.” And with that, she left the kitchen.

“I really need a goddamn drink,” Wynonna muttered to herself.

***  
Waverly was used to being the first one up in the morning. Nicole would get up early if she had to be at the station, but her default was to sleep in if she could. Wynonna rarely got up before noon if she could help it. So, Waverly was surprised to find Gus already in the kitchen drinking coffee when Waverly came down.

“Good morning,” Waverly said.

“’Morning, Waverly,” Gus replied.

“You’re up early.”

“You know what they say, early to bed, early to rise and all that horseshit,” Gus said with a smile and a wink. “Besides I couldn’t stay in that room anymore with Wynonna snoring like a bear.”

“I know, right! And she complains about Nicole and I being too loud,” she said as she poured herself some coffee, “Oh sorry, that sentence should have stayed in my head, right?” she said as she turned to Gus and made a sheepish face.

“That would have been my preference,” Gus replied and then added, “I am glad you are happy with Nicole though…apparently.”

“Very happy. Over the moon happy,” Waverly said.

“Good.”

“Do you want me to make some breakfast?” Waverly asked.

“No,” Gus pushed out a chair with her foot, “Come and sit with me Waverly, I want to talk to you.”

Waverly took the offered chair. “Okay.”

“How bad was the drinking?” Gus asked as Waverly took a seat.

“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” Waverly said.

“Don’t play stupid with me Waverly; you were never good at it. How bad was Wynonna’s drinking?”

Waverly paused and sighed, “Pretty bad,” she said, but then added, “But she hasn’t had a drink in over a month.”

“And you’re sure of that?” Gus asked.

“Wynonna doesn’t do things half-way, if she had been drinking, I’d know.”

“Fair enough,” Gus paused, “Doesn’t mean it’s not going to start up again.”

“I know, but she deserves a chance,” Waverly said.

“I agree,” Gus said, “But I can’t leave Alice here if I don’t think she’s going to be taken care of.”

“Wynonna would never do anything to hurt Alice,” Waverly said.

“I was a bad aunt to you Waverly. To you and Wynonna both,” Gus said.

Waverly shook her head, “No, you raised me. You’re the reason I’m the person I am today.”

“I waited too long. I knew that Ward was a mean drunk. I should have done something once your Mama was gone, but I didn’t. Ward never would have let me take Willa, but you and probably Wynonna, I could have saved you from that house. But Curtis and I were trying for our own at the time, and I thought it would be too much. Sometimes I wonder if we couldn’t have little ones of our own, because I was being punished for ignoring what you girls were going through.”

Waverly reached out and took Gus’s hand, “Don’t say that. You were an awesome Aunt. You did the best you could.”

Gus shook her head, “No I didn’t. You were young enough that I could still help you, but Wynonna…. things might have been so different for her if I had just taken you girls.”

“Why are you telling me all this?” Waverly asked.

“Because I want you, I need you, to be a better aunt than I was.”

“What do you mean?”

“You know what I mean. You already started when you called me and asked me to wait to bring Alice. Did you think I bought that bullshit about the room not being ready?” Gus asked, and Waverly just gave an embarrassed shrug. “I need to make sure if I leave Alice here that there will be someone who will look out for her if Wynonna can’t. I need to know that no matter what Wynonna does, that Alice will be safe and happy and well taken care of. Do you understand?”

Waverly nodded, “I think so.”

“I know it will be hard. You always look for the good in people, especially Wynonna. I know you love her. When you were little, you used to think the sun rose and set with her and I understand why. She protected you, but you need to protect Alice now, Waverly.”

Waverly nodded, unsure if her voice would fail her. She did love Wynonna. Wynonna was her big sister, her protector and her best friend. But she also knew that Gus was right and that at the end of the day someone needed to look out for Alice.

“I think maybe, Nicole can help you?”

“She noticed the drinking first,” Waverly admitted.

“Then trust her to help you.”

Waverly nodded again, “I promise. No matter what happens I will make sure Alice is alright.”

Gus smiled and patted Waverly’s hand. “I know you’ll be a better aunt than I was. You and Nicole both will.”

Part of Waverly felt disloyal to Wynonna even having this conversation, but at the end of the day, Waverly also knew that Alice was the most important thing. She would be strong and do what was right for Alice even if it hurt Wynonna.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you all who read the last chapter and were nice enough to leave kudos and comments. This is a bit of slow burn in terms of plot, but I see it as more of a character study of the various characters and how they all react to Alice coming home. I wanted a realistic level of angst at Alice's homecoming and I hope I hit the mark. There will be more extensive interactions between Alice and Wynonna and other characters in up coming chapters. Thank you to everyone who took the time to read this chapter as well.


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Aunt Gus leaves Alice with Wynonna. Can Wynonna deal with her daughter on her own? Or basically, the angst levels get turned up to 11.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks again everyone who reads this. Especially those that have taken the time to comment. I've erred on the side of making Alice fairly articulate for a five-year-old. It's both easier to write and I think probably easier to read. That being said, hopefully, I have not shot into unrealistic territory.

Gus had pronounced Alice “settled” and made her arrangements to return home. At first, it seemed like they had plenty of time to get used to the idea, but suddenly the day was upon them.  


Wynonna wasn’t sure what metric Gus had used to decide that Alice was “settled,” but Wynonna wasn’t sure that she agreed with it. Alice seemed largely comfortable with Waverly and Nicole (much to Wynonna’s chagrin), but she hardly looked at Wynonna and barely spoke to her. If she needed something, she still asked Gus first and then Waverly or Nicole. Wynonna was a distant third. A distant third to her own daughter.

Wynonna was sure Alice wanted to be any other place on earth besides standing in front of Wynonna with her hands gripping the girl’s shoulders.

Gus hugged Waverly goodbye. “I love you, Waverly. We’ll see each other again soon,” she then said to Nicole, “And you take care of my girl for me.”

“Yes, Ma’am,” Nicole smiled and put her arm around Waverly.

Gus then kneeled in front of Alice.

“You be a good girl for your Mama and your aunts,” Gus told her.

“I don’t want you to go!” Alice cried, “Let me come with you!”

“Alice,” Gus said as she smoothed Alice’s hair, “Your place is with your mother. This is your home now.” She hugged the little girl tightly and said, “I love you, darling.” She then released the girl and Wynonna saw her wipe a tear from her eyes.

She stood up and turned the full force of her glare on Wynonna. “You take care of that girl, you hear me.”

“I will,” Wynonna said, “I promise.”

“You better,” Gus said with a wag of her finger then her face softened, and she leaned in and gave Wynonna a quick hug, “You take care of yourself too.”

She released Wynonna turned and walked down the porch steps to the awaiting car. She didn’t turn back around. Wynonna guessed that if she had, she would have found it hard to leave.

Wynonna gripped Alice’s shoulders to keep her from running off the porch as the car drove away. The little girl began to cry and yell, “Don’t go! Come Back!” Finally, when the car was out of sight, Wynonna released Alice and she ran off the porch in the direction the car had gone. She stopped after a short distance realizing the chase was futile.

Wynonna followed her off the porch and put her hand on the girl’s shoulder and turned her around. Alice was still crying her face red and blotchy.

“Let’s go inside, Alice,” Wynonna said, “I think your Aunt Waverly made some hot chocolate.”

“I did,” Waverly offered from the porch.

“No!” The little girl yelled back in return.

“Come on Alice,” Wynonna said.

“No! I don’t want to!”

“Alice, your Aunt Waverly and I are going in and having some cocoa, come in and join us,” Nicole called from the porch. She then guided Waverly into the house. Wynonna could hear them talking, and it sounded like Nicole said, “Let’s give them a few minutes,” to Waverly as they disappeared inside the homestead.

“Alice you can’t stay out here. Come in the house,” Wynonna said with a sigh to the girl.

“No! I want Aunt Gus,” Alice said.

“Well she left, so you’re stuck with me, Kid. Come on inside,” Wynonna repeated.

“I don’t want you! I want Aunt Gus!”

“Alice Michelle Earp get your butt in that house right now!” Wynonna snapped. She hadn’t meant too, but Alice saying she didn’t want her struck a nerve.

“No!”

“Fine,” Wynonna said as she turned and started walking back towards the house, “Stay out here then. More hot chocolate for us,” Wynonna paused when she reached the porch stairs. She sighed and gripped the railing and took a deep breath. “Look, Alice, I know you're upset, but…” her voice trailed off as she turned around and found Alice was not standing there. “Alice?” she called and then louder, “Alice!”

She had been right there. How could she be gone? Where had she gone? Thoughts fired rapidly through Wynonna’s brain. The barn, she might be in the barn. Wynonna ran to the barn and sure enough, found the door opened a crack. She entered and began calling Alice’s name. There was no reply and no sign of the little girl.

Terror gripped Wynonna’s heart. Someone or something had taken her. That was the only explanation. Something had taken her baby girl.  
***  
“This is awful,” Waverly said as she leaned against Nicole in the living room of the Earp homestead, “Maybe we should go back out. Alice might come in for us.”

“It is, but we should give them a few more minutes. Let’s give Wynonna a chance to talk to her,” Nicole replied and wrapped her arms around the smaller woman and rested her chin on the top of her head.

Suddenly Wynonna burst through the door with enough force Nicole thought it would fly off the hinges.

“She’s gone!” Wynonna cried.

“What do you mean she’s gone,” Nicole and Waverly said at the same time as they separated.

“I turned around for two seconds, two seconds and…and she was just gone!” Wynonna explained frantically.

“She must have run somewhere,” Nicole said, “She’s probably in the barn.”

“I looked in the barn. She’s not there,” Wynonna said, “We need to get your officers out there. We need roadblocks. Someone had to have taken her!”

“It hasn’t been two minutes since we came in. You couldn’t have looked that hard. I’ll go back out and look,” Nicole said as she grabbed a flashlight from a drawer in a cabinet by the door.

“What part of she’s not in the fucking barn don’t you understand, Haught?” Wynonna asked as she grabbed Nicole’s arm to stop her.

“I’m going to look in the barn, you and Waverly look around the house,” Nicole repeated with a calmness she didn’t feel as she shrugged off Wynonna’s grasp. She was worried about Alice, but she was also annoyed at Wynonna.

“She’s five; she’s not a ninja. She didn’t run past me into the house without me noticing.”

“She could have run around the back of the house,” Nicole said dryly.

Wynonna opened and closed her mouth several times then said, “Fine. But when you don’t find her, I want the entire Purgatory police department out here.”

“If I don’t find her, then I promise then I will get officers out here,” Nicole said as she made her way towards the door, “I’ll be back. Let’s try to stay reasonably calm for now.” She didn’t wait for Wynonna’s reply before she went outside and pulled the door closed behind her.

She made her way the short distance to the barn. The door was open. She was sure Wynonna had left it like that, but it didn’t leave any helpful clues to whether Alice had opened it first. She entered the barn and turned on the flashlight.

“Alice, sweetie,” Nicole called out, “I know you’re upset, but you need to come out now. You’re scaring your Mom, and your Aunt Waverly and me.”

She stood in the center of the barn and made a slow circle letting the flashlight beam fall over the room. She also listened. After a few moments, she thought she heard the uneven breaths of someone who had been crying behind her. She turned and let the flashlight beam fall on a stack of hay that was piled up. She noticed a quick movement as the flashlight beam landed on the pile.

She walked around the hay and found Alice sitting on the floor with her knees pulled up to her chest and her face buried in them.

“There you are,” Nicole said softly, “Are you okay? Are you hurt?”

The little girl did not speak but shook her head.

“I’m going to sit down, okay,” Nicole said as she eased herself to the floor next to Alice.

***  
Waverly watched Wynonna pace around the room when they returned from looking outside. She looked absolutely frantic. Not that Waverly could blame her.

“Wynonna, I’m sure Nicole will find her,” Waverly said trying to sound reassuring.

“She’s not in the Goddamn barn,” Wynonna said then abruptly stopped pacing and turned to Waverly, “What’s the point of having the Sherriff living here if we can’t even get cops out here when we need them.”

“Give her a chance to look,” Waverly said.

“Forgive me if I don’t have total faith in Sheriff Haught-To-Trot’s tracking skills,” Wynonna said sarcastically, “Someone took her, Waverly. Someone took Alice.”

“You don’t know that,” Waverly said with a shake of her head, “You can’t just jump to the worse case scenario.”

“It’s me, Waverly,” Wynonna said as she pointed at herself, “Of course it’s the worst case. It’s always the worst case.”

Waverly reached out and tried to touch Wynonna’s arm, but Wynonna shrugged her off. “You have to stop thinking like that Wynonna; the Curse is over.”

“Is it? Maybe I’m just cursed,” Wynonna said. “Everything I love…Everyone I love…” her voice trailed off.

“I’m still here,” Waverly said and then after a pause, “Nicole will do everything to find her. Alice is her niece, and she loves her.”

Wynonna shook her head and held up her hand. “And you’ve got to stop calling her ‘Aunt Nicole’ in front of my kid. She’s not her aunt.”

Waverly frowned. “Of course she’s her aunt.”

“No,” Wynonna said as she pointed her finger at Waverly, “You’re my sister, so you’re her aunt. Nicole is…” She made a vague noise and waved her hand.

Waverly crossed her arms. “Nicole is my girlfriend. My partner. And I’m your half-sister.”

“Oh, what the hell does that mean?” Wynonna through-up her hands.

“It means,” Waverly said, “That blood isn’t what matters. I think, if nothing else, we’ve proven that, Wynonna. The family you make is just as important as the one you’re born with, more important maybe.”

***  
Nicole sat in silence next to Alice for a few moments. She knew she was playing chicken with the little girl to see who would talk first. To her surprise it was Alice.

“Am I in trouble?” Alice asked.

“No, sweetie, you’re not in trouble, but you did scare your mom pretty bad,” Nicole said. “I know you’re sad that Aunt Gus left, and you’re scared, but you can’t run away like that, okay?”

“I don’t want to stay here,” Alice said, “I want to go home.”

“Oh sweetie,” Nicole said as she ran her hand over the girl’s hair, “I know it’s scary being in a new place, but this is your home. I know you don’t remember, but you were born here.”

“I was?”

“Yep, I was there the day you were born. I got to see you. You were a peanut. Like this big,” Nicole held her hands a few inches apart.

“I wasn’t that small,” Alice said with a giggle.

“Maybe this small,” Nicole moved her hands a few inches further apart, “The point is, you were always meant to be here Alice.”

“Then why did I live with Aunt Gus?”

“What did Aunt Gus tell you?”

“That I had a Mama and she fought the bad men.”

“That’s right,” Nicole said with a nod, “Your mom fought bad people. And that’s why you had to live with Aunt Gus for a while until the bad people were gone and it was safe.”

“They’re gone now?”

“Yes, they’re gone now. And as soon as they were all gone your Mom brought you here because she loves you and she missed you so much.”

“I still don’t want to stay here,” Alice said glumly.

Nicole stroked Alice’s hair again, “That’s okay. It’s okay to be sad that Aunt Gus left. It’s okay to miss where you used to live. I promise that soon you won’t be so sad anymore.”

“Really?”

“Really. And until then it’s okay to cry, but what’s not okay is running away. Understand?”

“Okay,” Alice said with a sigh.

“When we go inside, you have to tell your mom ‘sorry’ for running away. She was really scared something had happened to you. Do you understand?”

Alice nodded.

“Okay then,” Nicole said as she stood up and brushed the hay off her pants, “how about we go inside and have some of Aunt Waverly’s very special hot chocolate.”

“Why is it special?”

“It’s guaranteed to make you not as sad for a while,” Nicole said as she held her hand out to Alice, “Want to try some?”

“Ok,” Alice said as she took Nicole’s hand and stood up.

***  
Nicole could hear Wynonna and Waverly arguing as she reached the front door. She smiled at Alice and gave her a wink before she opened the door.

“She gets two more minutes, and then I’m calling the cops here myself, I don’t care if she likes it,” Wynonna was saying as Nicole pushed the door open.

“No need,” Nicole said as she gently led Alice through the door, “Everyone’s safe and sound.”

“Oh, thank God,” Waverly said.

Wynonna stood with her mouth hanging open. Finally, she said, “Where was she?”

“In the barn,” Nicole said. She tried to keep the “told-you-so” tone out of her voice, but she wasn’t sure she succeeded. “Alice, what do you have to say to your Mom?” 

Alice didn’t answer but instead stared at her shoes. Nicole squeezed her hand and gave her arm a little shake. “Alice, don’t you have something to tell your Mom?”

“Sorry,” the little girl said finally, though it sounded less than sincere.

“For what?” Nicole asked.

“Running away.”

“And are we going to do that again?”

“No,” Alice said, “Aunt Nicole says it’s okay to cry but not to run away.”

“That’s right Alice,” Waverly said. “It is okay to cry sometimes, but we don’t run away.” She stepped closer to her sister and placed a hand on Wynonna’s shoulder, “And Mama what are you going to say?” She nudged Wynonna.

“It’s okay, Alice,” Wynonna said finally. There were unshed tears in her eyes.

“Okay then,” Nicole said, “I think it’s time for hot chocolate.” She led Alice by the hand into the kitchen. She helped Alice into a chair as Waverly poured the hot chocolate into mugs. Nicole noticed Wynonna was standing in the doorway but had not entered the kitchen.

“You want some cocoa, Wynonna?” Waverly asked.

Wynonna looked startled at the question and shook her head, “I think I’m going to get some air.” She turned and walked out of the kitchen. They heard the front door open and close.

Waverly started after her, but Nicole stopped her by placing a hand on her shoulder. “I’ll go,” she said.

Waverly frowned. “You sure?”

“Yeah, you stay with Alice,” Nicole replied. 

“Ok,” Waverly said, but she sounded unsure.

Nicole followed Wynonna’s path out of the kitchen through the living room and out to the porch. She found the dark-haired woman leaning against the porch railing squeezing it so tightly that she was bound to get splinters in her palms.

“You okay, Wynonna,” Nicole asked.

“Just ducky,” she said wryly.

Nicole came to stand next to Wynonna and leaned her back against the railing. “I know this is stressful for everyone but give it time. Everything will work out.”

Wynonna snorted and shook her head. “Easy for you to say. My kid likes you better than me.”

“What are you talking about?”

“She ran from me; she hid from me. She came out for you.” Wynonna’s voice was tight.

“Jesus Wynonna give her a break she’s five and the only mother she’s ever known just left,” Nicole said.

Wynonna turned and looked at Nicole. Tears spilled down her face. “I’m not mad at her. I don’t blame her. Could you imagine having me as a mother? Poor kid is saddled with me.” She let out a sob and then continued, “I should have left her where she was with Gus, safe and happy. What was I thinking bringing her here? What was I thinking, thinking I could raise a kid? I am the world shittiest mother.”

Nicole’s heart broke for the other woman. Nicole surprised herself by hugging Wynonna. She was even more surprised that Wynonna let her. She just held her for a moment while Wynonna sobbed into Nicole’s shoulder. 

Finally, Nicole stepped back and said, “Wynonna you deserve to know your daughter and your daughter deserves to know you. You both deserve to have you raise her.”

Wynonna wiped the tears from her face. “Bullshit, you didn’t think she should be here with me, Haught.”

“No, when you had all but abandoned the ‘functional’ part of ‘functional alcoholic,’ I didn’t think you should be raising a kid. I won’t apologize for thinking that, but you quit drinking…for Alice,” Nicole paused and took a deep breath. “Look Wynonna, I have never doubted that you love Alice. You wouldn’t have quit drinking if you didn’t. You wouldn’t have practically had a panic attack when she was missing if you didn’t. You wouldn’t be crying and wondering if you did the right thing by bringing her here if you didn’t. And I’m not saying that love is the only thing…but it’s a lot. And it’s more than some people get,” Nicole paused again before adding, “You’re not the world shittiest mother. You’re not even in the top ten.”

“No offense, Nicole but what makes you an expert?” Wynonna asked.

“I had shitty parents-a pair of them, so I know one when I see one. I’m not saying you’re not going to fuck some things up. Knowing you, Wynonna, you’ll probably fuck a lot of things up. But at the end of the day, you love your daughter and you can learn everything else. You can’t learn that. I can’t believe I’m saying this to you, but cut yourself some slack Wynonna. Relax and give it time and things will fall into place with Alice.”

“Thanks,” Wynonna said then added, “Nicole I know I’ve been…ya know…to you lately.”

“Extra special bitchy?” Nicole said with a sardonic smile, “Yeah, I noticed.”

“I’m sorry,” Wynonna said.

“It’s okay,” Nicole said then added, “Wynonna as long as I’ve known you, you’ve coped with stress by drinking and sleeping with inappropriate men…usually at the same time. Now you’re not doing either so, if you have to be a bitch to me to blow off some steam until you figure out something better, I can take it. As long as it doesn’t extend to Waverly or Alice, deal?”

“Deal,” Wynonna said with a slight smile.

“Good,” Nicole said with a smile, “Now take a few deep breaths. Then come back inside and splash some cold water on your face, because you look like shit." Wynonna's face was red and blotchy from crying. "Then come in and have some hot chocolate with your daughter,” Nicole said as she turned and started back into the house.

“Hey Nicole,” Wynonna said, and Nicole turned back towards her, “Seriously thanks. And if you tell anyone I cried on your shoulder; I’ll have to kill you.”

“You’re welcome. And fair enough.”


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A bad storm blows into Purgatory leaving Wynonna at the homestead alone with Alice. Can Wynonna deal with a scared five-year-old? Nicole and Waverly also finally have some alone time and come to a long-awaited decision about their future.

Waverly lifted Alice under the arms and sat her on the counter. She looked the girl in the eye with a serious look on her face. Alice returned the serious stare.

“Are you ready?” She asked.

“Uhuh.”

“Are you sure?” Waverly asked as she narrowed her eyes.

“I’m sure,” Alice replied.

“Ok, then I need the butter,” Waverly said as she held out her hand. Alice picked up a small bowl of softened butter and handed it to Waverly who dumped it in a bigger bowl, “Now I need the sugar,” Waverly said, and Alice handed her another bowl and Waverly dumped its contents in the bigger one. “Now, we cream,” Waverly said as she picked up a hand mixer. She took Alice’s hands and placed them on the mixer and then covered them with her own. “I’m going to need your help, I’m not sure I can handle it,” Waverly said as she pretended the mixer was shaking her.

Alice squealed with laughter at this point. When they finished creaming the butter and sugar, she said, “You’re silly, Aunt Waverly.”

“That’s what aunts are for, honey, to be silly with,” Waverly said as she dropped a kiss on the top of Alice’s head.

“Aunt Gus wasn’t silly,” Alice said. 

Waverly wasn’t surprised at that. She could describe Gus as many things; silly would never be one of them. “Aunt Gus is you’re Great-Aunt, so it doesn’t count,” she told Alice with a wink.

“Are Mama’s always scary?’ Alice asked.

“What?” Waverly said, taken aback.

“If aunts are always silly, are Mama’s always scary? I’ve never had one before,” Alice explained.

Waverly’s blood turned cold. It had been a few weeks since Gus left. Alice seemed to be happier. She didn’t cry as often, and she actually went to bed for Waverly and Nicole at a reasonable time, though it often took multiple readings of “Good Night Moon.” Had Wynonna done something to scare Alice? They hardly seemed to interact, and she didn’t think Wynonna had been alone with Alice very much. Even at bedtime she often watched Waverly read to Alice from the doorway. She didn’t even sit on the floor near the bed like Nicole did.

“Why is your Mama scary, Alice?” Waverly asked her niece. She steeled herself for the answer. 

“She doesn’t smile or laugh like you do,” Alice said, “She always stares at me and she looks mad.”

“Has she done anything to you to make her scary?” Waverly asked though she couldn’t believe she had to ask the question.

Alice shrugged. “No,” she said, “She just looks scary.”

Waverly let out the breath she didn’t know she was holding. Wynonna had not been herself for months, Waverly knew that. The funny, quick-witted woman that Waverly had always known had been replaced with someone sullen and monosyllabic. Waverly knew there were many factors. Doc leaving was one of them. Wynonna didn’t seem to think he was ever coming back and that had thrown her into a tailspin. And of course, Alice coming home. She guessed the reason she didn’t talk to Alice much was Wynonna’s fear of making a mistake, but Waverly understood how it could seem scary to a five-year-old.

She brushed the hair out of Alice’s face and looked her right in the eye. “Alice, your Mama, isn’t mad, she’s scared.”

“Of what?”

“I think of you,” Waverly said. The little girl looked confused as Waverly continued, “I think your Mama is scared that you won’t like her, and she doesn’t know what to say, so she stares at you.”

“That doesn’t make any sense,” Alice said.

“Grownups don’t sometimes,” Waverly said with a smile, “But I think if you sometimes say something nice to your Mama she’ll start to talk to you, and she won’t seem so scary. Maybe when we’re done, you can bring her a cookie, okay?”

“Okay,” Alice said.  
***  
Wynonna walked in the house and hung up her jacket. She had spent most of the day at the police station helping Nicole get a “gas leak” under control. It turned out that despite being revenant free, Purgatory still seemed to have a higher than normal incidence of the weird and borderline supernatural. Nicole had managed to use some of her grant money to keep Wynonna and Jeremy on as “consultants” to the Purgatory PD. This was the first case they had since Alice had arrived home, hell it was the first case since before Doc had left.

This particular “gas leak” appeared to be the poltergeist of a young woman who had died decades ago. Construction in one of the buildings downtown seemed to have stirred up the activity, and Jeremy had used some sort of electric doo-hicky to make the spirit go away. He had a fancy-pants explanation for it, Wynonna was just glad it worked because she had gotten enough boards thrown at her head. He wasn’t thrilled that Wynonna had called him Spengler for the rest of the day though.

She nearly jumped out of her skin when she felt the tug on the hem of her shirt behind her. She turned and found Alice staring up at her holding cookies.

“You want a cookie, Mama?” Alice asked.

Wynonna blinked a few times. Alice barely spoke to her. She wasn’t entirely sure that she had actually called her “Mama” directly before. She had heard Alice refer to her as it, but she was pretty sure she had never said it to her directly.

“Sure,” Wynonna said as she took the cookie, “Thank you, Alice.”

“Welcome,” Alice said as she turned and ran back off towards the kitchen.

Wynonna followed her as she munched on the cookie and overheard Waverly and Alice talking as she entered the kitchen.

“What did she say?” Waverly asked.

“’Thank you,’” Alice said.

“And did she look happy?”

Alice shrugged. “Can I color now?”

“Sure, sweetie,” Waverly said as she grabbed paper and crayons out of a drawer and put them on the table for Alice. “Hey, Wynonna,” she said as she finished and saw Wynonna standing in the doorway of the kitchen, “Didn’t know you were home.”

“Really?” 

“Nope.” Waverly couldn’t lie to save her life; Wynonna could always tell. Though she couldn’t fathom why she was lying about hearing Wynonna come home. “Everything work out with the G-H-O-S-T?”

“That’s ghost,” Alice said without looking up from her coloring.

“That’s right Alice, that spells ghost, and Aunt Waverly sucks at being subtle,” Wynonna said with a smirk. “It was F-I-N-E,” she added sarcastically.

“Why are you spelling stuff?” Alice asked.

“Never you mind, Alice,” Wynonna said.

“Keep coloring,” Waverly said to Alice, “I’m going to talk to your Mom for a minute.” Waverly motioned for Wynonna to follow her out into the living room. She stared at Wynonna for a moment without speaking. She seemed to be studying her.

“You wanted to talk, Waves?” Wynonna said.

Waverly smiled, “You look better.”

“Better than what?”

“Then you have in a while. More like yourself,” Waverly said.

“That’s what you couldn’t say in front of Alice?” Wynonna asked confused.

“No, but I’m not sure I have to tell you the other thing anymore,” Waverly said.

“Way to be cryptic, Baby Girl. And what was the whole cookie thing? Did you make Alice do that?”

Waverly shook her head. “I suggested it, but I didn’t make her.”

Wynonna smiled, “She called me ‘Mama,’ Waves. I think that might have been the first time.”

Waverly smiled and hugged her sister. “It’s going to work out. Just be yourself Wynonna.”

“Being myself has always gotten me in trouble, Waves,” Wynonna said.

“But it’s usually gotten you out of it too,” Waverly added.

***  
Nicole looked up as she heard a tap on the window of her office. Waverly stood in the doorway. She was a sight to make Nicole’s day. And it had been a busy day so far. A bad storm was rolling in with a tornado warning accompanying it. Nicole was organizing evacuation plans. There had also been calls for shoplifting and two fist fights over the last of the flashlights at the hardware store. Storms made people crazy.

“Hey, Waves, what are you doing here?” Nicole said as she got up from her desk.

“I came into town to get a few things. It’s like the Hunger Games in the supermarket, by the way,” Waverly said as she walked into the office. She then pulled the door closed behind her and added, “Plus I didn’t think I could stand not seeing you for an entire day. I don’t think I gave you a proper goodbye kiss this morning.”

“You don’t?” Nicole said with a smile. Nicole hadn’t planned on driving all the way back out to the homestead during the storm. She figured that if she was needed in town it would be too far and dangerous of a drive to get back. She planned to crash on the couch in her office and hope she wasn’t needed.

Waverly walked seductively over to Nicole and rested her hands on the taller woman’s shoulders. “Nope, and I thought I had to rectify that. Especially if you’re going to be sleeping on that lumpy couch.” Waverly leaned up and pressed her lips against Nicole’s. Her hand slid up to the back of Nicole’s neck and gently stroked the nape of her neck. Waverly deepened the kiss and slowly began walking Nicole backward towards the couch as Nicole’s hands began to wander down Waverly’s body. They wound up tumbling down on top of the couch with Waverly on top.

Nicole broke the kiss and took a deep breath, “Waves, what are you doing?”

“I’m giving you something to think about tonight,” she said with a mischievous smile.

“Baby,” Nicole said with a gulp, “there are people out there. I’m the Sherriff. We can’t have sex in here,” the last sentence was said in barely a whisper.

“I was thinking more make-out session, actually,“ Waverly said.

“Oh, well in that case,” Nicole said with a smile as she leaned up and caught Waverly’s mouth.

***  
Neither Nicole or Waverly could suppress their giggles as they exited Nicole’s office a short time later. Nicole glanced around the bullpen if anyone had heard them making out then they weren’t letting on.

“I better get back,” Waverly said as she rocked up on her toes and kissed Nicole on the cheek.

“You guys stay safe,” Nicole said more seriously, “If you need me, call me.”

“I will,” Waverly promised.

“I’ll walk you out,” Nicole said as she placed her hand on the small of Waverly’s back and guided her towards the front of the station. They were almost to the doors when Dan, one of Nicole’s newer deputy’s walked in. He was soaking wet from head to toe.

“Did it start already?” Nicole asked him.

“Yes, Sheriff, about twenty minutes ago,” he said.

“Jeez, I better get going,” Waverly said.

“You driving up to the homestead? I wouldn’t suggest it; it’s already coming down in sheets,” he replied.

“I have to get back up there,” Waverly said.

“No, Waves, you’re not driving in this. It’s dangerous,” Nicole said firmly.

“Wynonna is watching Alice. I can’t stay in town,” Waverly said.

“Dan, thanks for the update, would you excuse us though,” Nicole said to her deputy. 

He nodded and quickly made his way into the station. He seemed smart enough not to get in the middle of a potential fight between his boss and her girlfriend. 

“I don’t think it counts as ‘watching’ if it’s your own child,” Nicole said drily.

“I can’t just leave them alone up there, together. I don’t think Alice has been completely alone with Wynonna since she got here.”

Nicole sighed, “Well she’s going to have to be eventually. It seems like it’s going to be tonight. Wynonna is Alice’s mother, and at some point, she’s going to have to start taking care of her own child.”

“You’re the one who didn’t even think, Alice should come home,” Waverly exclaimed.

“Not when Wynonna was swimming around in the bottom of a bottle. But she hasn’t had a drink in months. There is nothing to drink at the house, and she can’t leave to get any. I think it’s safe to say if nothing else Wynonna will not be drunk tonight.”

Waverly looked down at the floor and shook her head. “You don’t understand. Alice is scared of Wynonna. She told me she was. I think it’s getting better, but…” her voice trailed off, “I don’t know. I don’t know how either one of them are going to do alone with each other all night.”

Nicole sighed and pulled Waverly into her arms and hugged her. “Look,” she said, “We’ll call them. If Wynonna doesn’t think she can handle it, or you think things are going bad already, then I’ll figure out a way to get you out to the homestead. If things seem ok, then you’re staying here where it’s safe, deal?”

“Okay,” Waverly said though she sounded unsure.

***  
“We’ll be fine, Waves,” Wynonna said into her phone. She wasn’t sure she believed it, but she wasn’t going to let her baby sister get into a car wreck driving in a storm.

“Are you sure, because if you’re not sure…” Waves said her voice sounding tinny and far away over the phone.

“It’s no problem, everything is going to be fine,” Wynonna reassured her. “Stay safe and dry, okay.”

“You too,” Waverly said, “Give Alice a kiss for me.”

“Sure thing,” Wynonna said as she looked down at the girl playing dolls on the floor. She hung up the phone and said, “Looks like it’s just you and me, Kid.”

 

***  
Nicole and Waverly dashed into Shorty’s. Even the short walk had left them completely sopping wet. Luckily the bar was still open, though there were no patrons. Nedley was wiping down the bar and looked up as they came in.

“Sheriff Haught, Waverly, I’m sorry, but I was just closing up on account of the storm if you’re looking for a drink,” he said. Doc had apparently convinced Nedley to run Shorty’s for him before he had left town. Nedley claimed he agreed to it just to return the favor of Doc buying the place, but Nicole thought that Nedley secretly enjoyed being the town barkeep.

“I figured,” Nicole said, “I was actually hoping I could ask you for a favor?”

“Sure thing.”

“I was planning on riding out the storm on the office couch,” it still felt strange for Nicole to refer to the Sherriff’s office as “her” office around Nedley, “But Waverly got stuck in town too, and I was hoping we might be able to stay in the room upstairs?”

“Sure, not a problem. I even put fresh sheets on the bed up there, in case I got stuck here,” he replied. 

“Were you going to stay here, we don’t want to kick you out,” Waverly said.

“No,” Nedley said with a sigh, “Calamity Jane gets upset if I don’t come home. Was only going to do it if I had no other choice. It’s not much of a drive to my place. Should be fine,” He replied. Much like the bar, Nedley had been “convinced” to take Calamity Jane when Nicole moved into the homestead full time. She originally had tried to take the cat with her, but CJ had hated the old house. Nedley had pretended to be doing her a favor, but Nicole knew he loved that cat and it was good for him not to be completely alone at home.

“Thank you, Sir,” Nicole said. She couldn’t bring herself to call Nedley anything other than ‘Sherriff” to his face, but he had insisted that she was the sheriff now and she should call him, Randy. As that was never happening, they had settled on her calling him, “Sir.”

“Not a problem,” he said with a smile and threw the rag he was using under the bar, “You ladies stay safe. Feel free to have a drink on the house. I think there are towels and stuff in the bathroom too.” 

Nedley left a few minutes later, and Nicole and Waverly ventured upstairs to check on the state of the bedroom. Nedley had indeed put fresh sheets on the bed, and there were towels and some toiletries in the bathroom.

Nicole watched Waverly. She could tell from the way her girlfriend was acting that she was still worried about Wynonna and Alice.

Nicole sat at the end of the bed and patted the spot next to her. “Join me,” she said.

Waverly sat down next to her and sighed. “I never figured I’d sleep in this room again,” she said.

“Good or bad memories?” Nicole asked.

“Some of both,” Waverly turned and pointed at the wall to her left, “That’s where we patched the hole from when I almost shot Wynonna.”

“What?” Nicole asked surprised and confused.

“I never told you about that?” Waverly said with a laugh. She explained the story to Nicole. When she had arrived at the bar that afternoon someone had told her Champ went upstairs with a woman. Waverly had been sick and tired of being cheated on, especially in her own bed, so she decided to bring the shotgun up to scare them both a little. She had no plans on using it until she reached the door and heard the woman threatening Champ. A crappy boyfriend he may have been, but she didn’t want him really hurt so, Waverly had burst in guns blazing, thinking she was saving Champ’s life. That was until Wynonna had popped up from behind the bed.

Nicole laughed, “How did I not know that story?”

Waverly smiled, “It happened before I even met you. I certainly didn’t want to tell you back then; you would have thought I was crazy and then it wasn’t important.”

“I wouldn’t have thought you were crazy. I would have thought you were brave and loyal to someone who didn’t deserve it,” Nicole said as she rested her forehead against Waverly’s.

“You always see the best in me,” Waverly said.

“It’s not hard,” Nicole said with a smile and kissed Waverly, “You’re still worried about Wynonna and Alice,” she said as the kiss ended.

“I think things are getting better. I just don’t want them to get worse again,” Waverly said, then added, “I promised Gus before she left that I would make sure Alice was taken care of.”

“And she will be,” Nicole said, “No matter what. But we do have to give Wynonna a chance to parent her own daughter.”

“You’re right; I know you’re right.”

“Hey,” Nicole said with a smile, “Why don’t we go back down and take Nedley up on that drink on the house.”

“Okay.”

***  
“Aunt Waverly isn’t coming back?” Alice asked. She sounded like she was on the verge of tears. She was sitting on the living room floor. Her dolls abandoned around her.

“Just tonight. She and Nicole are staying in town. They’ll be back in the morning,” Wynonna explained.

“But I want Aunt Waverly!”

“You and me both, Kid,” Wynonna muttered then said more clearly, “It’s not safe for her to drive right now. She’ll be back in the morning.”

Just then to make things even better a huge roll of thunder sounded, practically shaking the house. Alice screamed and started to cry.

“Hey, hey,” Wynonna said as she knelt on the floor in front of her daughter, “It’s just thunder.”

“It’s scary,” Alice replied.

“No, it’s not. Do you know what thunder is?” Alice shook her head. Wynonna smiled and said, “It’s angels bowling. That’s all. The thunder is when they get a strike.”

“What’s a strike?”

“Have you ever been bowling?”

“No.”

“It’s when…” Wynonna’s voice trailed off, she paused and then said, “You know what, instead of me telling you why don’t I show you? Go get a ball from your room, and I’ll meet you in the kitchen, okay?”

“Okay,” Alice said, but she sounded unsure.

***  
Nicole and Waverly made their way down to the bar proper. Their clothes were still wet, but they, unfortunately, didn’t have anything to change into. 

“I’ll pour us a couple of beers; you find something on the jukebox,” Waverly said.

“Going to dust off those bartending talents?” Nicole asked with a laugh. Waverly laughed back and playfully pushed Nicole towards the jukebox while she made her way around the bar.

Nicole flipped through the choices on the jukebox and finally landed on one. She put change in the machine and music poured out, “When the night has come, and the land is dark...” played. She turned and watched as Waverly poured two beers from the taps. She put them down and then pulled her damp shirt away from her body.

Nicole couldn’t help but flash back to that morning all those years ago when she had watched Waverly do something very similar. “I didn’t know Shorty’s had wet t-shirt contests,” Nicole called out to Waverly.

Waverly grinned, “Very funny.” 

She started to step out from around the bar, but Nicole held up her hand. “Wait,” she said, “Stay there for a second.” Nicole reached inside the pocket of her pants. The small box that she carried from home to work most days was there. She locked it in her desk drawer at work every morning, carried it home and hid it in various spots at home at night. It had been a ritual for months. Maybe it was time for it to end.

Waverly raised her eyebrows and asked, “What’s up?”

“Baby, can we talk,” Nicole asked as she joined Waverly behind the bar.

“Sure, but why does it need to be here?”

Nicole swallowed. Her mouth went dry, and her tongue felt too big for her mouth. She wasn’t sure why she was nervous. Nicole and Waverly had talked about marriage. They had decided to wait until the curse was broken so they could celebrate without anything hanging over their heads. And when it finally was broken, that’s when Nicole had driven one day to the big city and picked out a ring. And then Wynonna started drinking more and then Alice came home, and it hadn’t felt like the right time to ask…It felt like the right time now.

Nicole reached out and took Waverly’s hands, “I’ve been trying to figure out the perfect time and place and the perfect way to do this. But I just realized, the perfect place is wherever you are, the perfect time is whenever we’re together, and maybe there isn’t a perfect way to do this, and I should just do my best. But everything that’s happened tonight makes me think the universe is telling me it’s time.”

Waverly’s mouth opened, and tears formed in the corners of her eyes, “Is this…are you…really?” 

“Waverly Earp, I didn’t know it was possible to love someone as much as I love you. I certainly didn’t think it was possible to love you a little more each day. I had lived places before I met you, but I never had a home-never. You’re my home, Waverly.” Tears began to fall from Nicole’s eyes and Waverly wiped them away gently, “You are my everything, and I just want to spend the rest of my life with you,” Nicole took a deep breath bent down on one knee and pulled the ring box out of her pocket and flicked it open, “Waverly Earp, will you marry me?”

“Oh, my God! Yes! Of course,” Waverly half laughed, and half cried as she started to drop down to her knees in front of Nicole. Tears were streaming down her face.

“Wait!” Nicole said. 

Waverly froze. “What’s wrong?”

“I’m kneeling in spilled beer. I just didn’t want you to do that too,” Nicole said with a laugh.

Waverly laughed too and pulled Nicole back up to her feet, “Then come back up here,” she said as she kissed her.

“Don’t you want to see the ring,” Nicole mumbled against Waverly’s lips. 

“Yes!” Waverly exclaimed. 

Nicole plucked the ring out of the box and held it up for Waverly. She then took Waverly’s left hand and gently placed it on her finger.

“It’s a princess cut!” Waverly said with a grin.

***  
Wynonna stood behind Alice and guided her as the girl threw the ball at the “pins.” In actuality, they were tin cans. Alice knocked them all down.

“Way to go! That’s a strike, Kiddo,” Wynonna said, “High-five,” she held her hand up, and Alice met her palm.

“That’s good, right?” she asked.

“Can’t do better,” Wynonna told her. Just then the lights in the house flickered off. “Are you fricken kidding me,” Wynonna said and looked up at the ceiling. Alice to her surprise jumped and clung to her legs. Wynonna placed her hand on Alice’s head, “It’s okay, the power being out is actually the best thing that could happen.”

“But it’s dark,” Alice said.

Wynonna bent down and picked Alice up. Alice clung to her tightly. “You don’t like the dark, huh?” Alice shook her head. “That’s okay. It’s okay to be scared of the dark. But with the power out it means, we half to eat all the ice cream before it melts.”

“We do?”

“Totally, it’s a rule of power outages,” Wynonna said.

***  
The house was illuminated with candlelight a little while later as Alice sat on the kitchen table while both she and Wynonna ate ice cream out of the tub. Wynonna used her spoon to smear ice cream on the little girl's nose and said, “You’ve got something on your face there Alice,” with a grin.

Alice laughed and then said, “You’re not scary. You’re silly like Aunt Waverly.”

Wynonna paused and looked at the little girl. “Did you think I was scary?”

Alice nodded. “You seemed mad. You didn’t smile or laugh like Aunt Waverly or Aunt Nicole.”

Wynonna swallowed and held back tears. “I’m sorry, Alice. I didn’t mean to make you scared of me,” she looked the girl in the eye and said, “It wasn’t your fault I didn’t smile.”

“Aunt Waverly said you were scared of me,” Alice said as she took another spoonful of ice cream.

“She did, did she? I guess I kind of was,” Wynonna ruffled the girl’s hair, “I was scared you wouldn’t like me. And I was also kind of sad.”

“I like you,” Alice said. 

“I like you too, Alice. I love you very much,” Wynonna told her.

They continued eating the ice cream when Alice suddenly asked, “Why were you sad? Did I make you sad?”

“No, kiddo, you could never make me sad,” she paused and considered how to explain a broken heart to a five-year-old. “Do you remember when Aunt Gus left, and you were sad because you love her?”

“Yeah.”

“Well, someone I loved very much left and it made me sad. And I didn’t want to smile very much for a while. I’m sorry that made me seem scary,” Wynonna said.

“It’s okay. Who left?”

Wynonna stroked her daughter’s head. She wasn’t sure that she should tell Alice about Doc, but there had been so many lies and secrets in her own childhood, she didn’t want any for Alice. “You’re a daddy,” she said finally.

“I don’t have a daddy,” Alice replied.

“Did Gus tell you that?” Wynonna asked. 

“No, she told me about you. She showed me a picture but never told me about a daddy, so I must not have one.”

“Everyone has a daddy.”

“Jesus doesn’t. God’s his daddy. God must be my daddy too,” Alice said.

Wynonna smiled and laughed at the thought of her having a virgin birth. Alice was a little too smart for her own damn good. “You’re right; God was Jesus’s daddy. But you have a real living daddy. Aunt Gus didn’t know him very well, so she couldn’t tell you much about him.”

“What’s his name?”

“John Henry, but everyone calls him Doc. You have the same eyes as him.”

“I do?”

“You do.” She stood from the table and held her arms open for Alice who let her pick her up. “I’ll show you.”

Wynonna carried Alice upstairs to Wynonna’s room and placed her on the bed. She lit a candle on the nightstand. She then went to her closet and pulled out a shoebox of old photos. She didn’t have many of Doc. Even before becoming a vampire, he was camera shy. She rifled through the pictures until she found the picture of them all around the table-the picture Dolls had left her.

She held it up to Alice and pointed at Doc, “This is your Daddy.”

Alice looked at the picture, “Why’d he go?”

“He was sick, kiddo. He went to go get better.”

“He couldn’t get better here?”

“No, he needed a special, doctor. And there weren’t any around here.”

“When will he come back?”

“I don’t know,” Wynonna said with a shake of her head, “I don’t know. I do know that he loved you very much though,” She said as she put her arm around her daughter and placed a kiss on her head.

“Mama?”

“Yeah, kiddo?”

“Can I stay with you? I don’t want to be alone in the dark.”

“Of course,” Wynonna said, “I’ll even read you that book.”

“Okay!”

***  
The sunlight streamed through the small window in the apartment above Shorty’s. Nicole hadn’t slept much; she had been too busy staring at Waverly, her fiancée. She liked the sound of that.  
To be fair neither one of them had gotten much sleep, but at the moment Waverly was currently half laying across her snoring softly in the narrow bed. Nicole gently traced her fingers up and down her back. She felt Waverly stir.

“What time is it?” Waverly mumbled.

“About five thirty,” Nicole replied, “Sorry I didn’t mean to wake you.”

Waverly shifted so she wasn’t on top of Nicole and Nicole rolled over on her side to face Waverly. “It’s okay; we should probably head out soon anyway,” she said sleepily, “Storm’s over, right?”

Nicole nodded. “Looks like it’s going to be a beautiful day,” she said with a smile.

“Last night was real right? I didn’t just have a really good dream; we are engaged?” Waverly asked.

“It was real, Baby,” Nicole scooted forward and kissed Waverly.

***  
They had showered and dressed, though they were forced to put on the clothes from the day before. Nicole’s pants smelled like stale beer, but at least they were dry. They had spent most of the night on the floor.

Nicole hadn’t gotten any calls during the night. They checked in with the station on their way back to the homestead. There were some trees down, but nothing serious. The storm wasn’t quite as bad as predicted. Nicole informed them that she wasn’t coming in the rest of the day and if there was a serious issue to call her. She figured getting engaged was a reason to play hooky.

They couldn’t bear the idea of being apart right then, so they decided to leave the jeep in town and pick it up later so Waverly could ride home with Nicole. They drove home mostly in silence. Just holding hands and stealing glances at each other.

“I’d think I’d like to get married on the homestead,” Waverly said halfway through the ride, “Something small with just family and really close friends.”

“That sounds good to me,” Nicole replied.

***  
Waverly was over the moon happy. She hadn’t been expecting Nicole to propose, but she was overjoyed that she had. She wanted nothing more in the world than to spend the rest of her life with Nicole and getting to promise to do it in front of their family and friends only made it better.

It took them an inordinately long time actually to make it into the house. They stopped to kiss each other at least a dozen times on the walk up to the house. 

Waverly’s anxiety about Wynonna and Alice had pretty much disappeared when Nicole had proposed, but it came rushing back the moment they opened the door. The living room was a mess. Toys and crayons and other stuff were strewn all over the floor.

“This can’t be good,” Waverly said.

Nicole patted her arm, “It’s not that bad, just messy. I don’t know about you, but I need coffee.”

Waverly nodded and followed Nicole into the kitchen. She almost walked into the back of her not realizing she had stopped short in the doorway. “What’s wrong?” Waverly asked as she looked around Nicole.

She quickly realized why Nicole stopped. The kitchen was a disaster. There were cans all over the floor. There were open tubs of ice cream in sticky pools on the table. There was candle wax all over the counters.

“Oh god,” Waverly said, “Something bad happened here.”

“We don’t know that Baby, I’ll check upstairs,” Nicole said as she quickly rubbed Waverly’s arm and rushed to check.

What could have happened? Did someone break in? There were no more revenants, but it didn’t keep regular bad guys out of the house. Where were Wynonna and Alice?

“Baby, they’re up here,” Nicole’s voice called down softly in answer to Waverly’s unspoken question.

Waverly dashed up the stairs. She found Nicole standing in front of Wynonna’s room the door was open. “Are they okay?” Waverly asked.

Nicole turned and smiled and put her finger to her lips and then pointed into the room. Wynonna and Alice were sound asleep in the bed. Alice was laying sideways in the bed for some reason, and Wynonna was pushed over to the very edge. Alice’s legs were across Wynonna’s stomach. Both Earps were snoring.

“I think they’re fine,” Nicole said softly.

“Do you think she’ll be mad if I take a picture, it’s so cute?” Waverly said as she pulled out her phone.

“I think she’ll kill you…Do it anyway,” Nicole said with a grin.

***  
Nicole and Waverly changed their clothes and then decided to tackle cleaning up the kitchen. Nicole couldn’t imagine what had gone on the night before but since both Alice and Wynonna seemed to be perfectly fine, it couldn’t be too bad.

After they had cleaned up the cans and chiseled the wax off the counters and cleaned up the sticky pools of melted ice cream, Waverly did the dishes as Nicole dried.

“I still kind of find those gloves sexy,” she said as she put the silverware away.

“Oh really?” Waverly asked, “Why don’t you show me how sexy you find them,” she said turning to Nicole.

Nicole grinned and kissed her. The kiss deepened, and Nicole pressed Waverly back into the counter. She bent down and lifted Waverly, so she was now sitting on the edge of the counter. Waverly pulled the gloves off and started to undo the buttons on Nicole’s shirt when they were interrupted by a voice behind them.

“Jesus,” Wynonna said, “You two, we eat off of there.”

Nicole and Waverly separated. Waverly slid off the counter, and Nicole turned around to button her shirt. 

“Good morning Wynonna,” Waverly said, “Mind telling me what the hell happened in the kitchen last night?”

“What?” Wynonna said trying to play coy as she sat down at the table.

“The ice cream…everywhere, the candle wax, the cans?”

“The power went out, so we needed candles, and then we had to eat the ice cream before it melted,” Wynonna explained.

“What about the cans?” Nicole asked.

“I taught Alice to bowl,” Wynonna said if it was the most rational explanation in the world.

“With our can goods?” Waverly asked.

“Well, I didn’t have any pins. I tired her out, at any rate, she’s still asleep.”

Nicole just shook her head. Waverly put the dish gloves back on and began to finish up the dishes. Nicole couldn’t help it; she kept glancing over at Waverly who would slyly smile back. They occasionally playfully bumped into each other as they handed the dishes back and forth.

Wynonna made a gagging noise behind them. Nicole rolled her eyes.

“What is up with you two?” Wynonna asked.

“What do you mean?” Waverly said without turning from the dishes, she caught Nicole’s eye and winked though.

“An unexpected side effect of not drinking is I actually notice shit, now. You two are always nausea-inducing, but you’ve turned the googly eyes up to eleven this morning. So what’s up? It’s not your anniversary…I remember that because it’s seared into my retinas…”

“Which is why you should knock before entering rooms,” Nicole said with faux cheerfulness.

Wynonna ignored her and continued, “It’s not like the anniversary of the first time you banged or something gross like that, is it?” she said and made a face.

“No, it is not an anniversary of anything,” Waverly said.

“So what’s up with you two?”

Waverly glanced over at Nicole. She mouthed, “Should we tell her?”

Nicole nodded. She wasn’t exactly sure what Wynonna’s reaction would be their engagement. She guessed she would be happy for them, but you could never quite be sure how Wynonna would feel about anything.

Waverly turned around and took off the dish gloves. She held her left hand out towards Wynonna. Wynonna stood and took Waverly’s hand. She didn’t say anything for a moment. Instead, she looked back and forth between Waverly and Nicole.

Finally, she said, “Haught-damn, it’s about fucking time,” and she grinned. “You happy, Baby Girl?” she asked Waverly.

“So, unbelievably happy,” Waverly said as tears began to slide down her cheeks.

Wynonna hugged Waverly tightly and then turned to Nicole. “Welcome to the family, Haught,” she said as she hugged Nicole then added softly, “Not that you weren’t before.”

“Thanks, Wynonna,” Nicole said as she felt herself tearing up. There were even unshed tears in Wynonna’ eyes.

“Why’s everyone crying?” A small voice asked from the doorway. Alice was standing there wearing pajamas with bunnies on them. “Did something bad happen?”

Wynonna walked over to the girl and picked her up, sitting her on her hip. She then brushed the hair off her face. “No, kiddo, nothing bad happened. Actually, something very good happened. You’re Aunt Waverly, and your Aunt Nicole are going to get married.”

“Aren’t they married already?”

Wynonna smirked, “You’d think so, but nope.”

“Then why are you crying?”

“Sometimes grownups cry when they’re happy too,” Wynonna said to the little girl.

“Grownups are weird,” Alice replied.

“Yes, they are,” Wynonna said.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So after the season 3 finale, I figured we could all use a WayHaught proposal with an answer lol. Also obviously this now diverges pretty hard with cannon after mid-season 3 so you can consider it an alternate timeline if you'd like. Once again thanks to everyone who took the time to read, and especially to those who commented. I appreciate the feedback.


	5. Chapter 5

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Alice continues to grow closer to her mother, but Wynonna has to deal with the stress of Alice's first day of school. Waverly and Nicole also discover that interrupting might just run in the family.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> While not particularly long or explicit there is a WayHaught sex scene in this chapter so it's probably NSFW. There are also more frequent dropping of the F-bomb then there has been in rest of the work, as Wynonna goes full mama bear on Alices teacher.

Wynonna felt stupid being nervous to meet Alice’s teacher, but she was. She had been since she had gotten the letter from the school asking her to come in. She had faced down demons, vampires and all manner of supernatural critters, but for some reason being judged by a kindergarten teacher scared the crap out of her.

She entered the school and made her way to the office. She could feel the eyes of several staff members fall upon her as she walked down the hallway. She probably wasn’t dressed like most Purgatory moms with five-year-olds. She wore her leather jacket and her favorite ripped jeans. 

As she entered the office the receptionist looked up, “Can I help you?” the grandmotherly looking woman asked.

“Yeah, I’m supposed to be meeting with my kid’s teacher,” she pulled the letter out of her back pocket and checked the name, “Miss Peterson.”

“And you are?”

“Wynonna Earp.”

“Alright then,” the woman handed Wynonna a visitor badge and said, “it’s room 103, third door on the left. Miss Peterson is expecting you.”

“Thanks,” Wynonna said. She made her way down the hall to room 103. She found the door open and she walked in. The room was filled with tiny tables and chairs. Colorful posters covered the walls. A very young-looking woman was taping paper leaves to one of the walls. She stopped and turned as Wynonna entered the room.

“Hi there,” the woman said in an overly chipper voice, “You must be Mrs. Earp.” She was in her early twenties with short dark hair, and she wore a horribly ugly blouse with apples on it, a blue cardigan, and an unflattering skirt. Wynonna thought she looked like someone dressed in a kindergarten teacher Halloween costume rather than an actual teacher.

“Uh no, definitely not Mrs. Earp,” Wynonna replied with a hint of sarcasm in her voice.

“Oh, I am so sorry,” the woman exclaimed, “The office is supposed to make a note if the child and the mother have different last names, but sometimes they forget. What’s your last name?”

“Oh, it’s Earp,” Wynonna said with a wave of her hand, “I’m just not a ‘misses.’”

“My apologies, do you prefer Ms. Earp?”

“I prefer, Wynonna, actually.”

“Um…alright then,” the woman said, she seemed somewhat taken aback, “I’m Miss Peterson, but I suppose if we’re doing first names, you can call me Emily.” She held out her hand, and Wynonna shook it. “Let’s have a seat, shall we?” She motioned to two of the tiny chairs.

“Don’t have any non-munchkin sized furniture?” Wynonna asked as she awkwardly sat down.

“We feel it’s important to be on the same level as the child,” Miss Peterson explained, her tone was very serious.

“You do realize there are no children here, right now, right?” Wynonna asked as she motioned around the room. The other woman laughed though it sounded less than sincere to Wynonna.

“Very funny, Mrs…” she paused, “I’m sorry, Wynonna.”

“Yeah, I’m a laugh a minute.”

“So, let’s get down to discussing Alice, shall we.”

“Oh let’s.”

“She tested very highly on the kindergarten readiness test. Her language skills and reading seem to be fairly advanced for her age.”

“Her Aunt is smart,” Wynonna said with a smile, “God knows she doesn’t get it from me.”

“She attended a Pre-K?”

“Yeah, we got the records.”

“Yes, I saw them. How did Alice handle Pre-K?”

“I don’t know what you mean?”

“Did she get along with other students? Did she make friends? Did she have separation issues, being away from you?”

“What does that have to do with anything?” Wynonna asked narrowing her eyes at the younger woman.

“While Alice tested very highly on the language and reading skills, and also on physical and motor development, she tested slightly lower on the social development portion.”

“Excuse me?” Wynonna remembered Alice taking the stupid test, though she had been in the office filling out paperwork while it happened. Alice had been in a room with some sort of counselor for a few minutes, and then they had come and gotten Wynonna. Alice had been upset but calmed down quickly once Wynonna came in.

“She had issues taking direction from the person administering the test. She was reluctant to share toys with the administer. From what I heard she became quite upset and kept asking for you.”

“She’s shy around new people. She’s five, is it really that strange she wanted her mother?” Wynonna asked defensively.

“No,” Peterson said with a shake of her head, “But if she attended Pre-K usually it helps with the separation anxiety. I was just wondering if she had issues when you dropped her off then?”

“I don’t know,” Wynonna said quietly. She hated to admit that she had no idea what Alice had done when Gus dropped her off for school.

“I’m sorry, I don’t understand.”

“I never dropped her off.”

“Did whomever dropped her off for you ever mention any issues? Did the teachers?”

“Alice wasn’t living with me when she went to Pre-K,” Wynonna said.

“Oh…um…” the other woman sounded flustered, “I didn’t realize that. Was she with her father?”

Wynonna thought that Miss Peterson was a nosey little bitch, but she did manage to bite her tongue and simply said, “No, she was living with my aunt.”

“No judgment,” she said, though Wynonna felt there was plenty of judgment in her tone, “But are there any legal issues that the school should be aware of?”

“What the fuck are you asking me?” Wynonna asked coldly.

“Mrs. Earp…Wynonna, we don’t use that kind of language here,” Miss Peterson said with a tone that Wynonna found very condescending.

Wynonna leaned forward in her chair and motioned around the room. “You do realize there are no actual fucking children in this room, right? I mean I want to make sure my kid’s teacher isn’t fucking delusional.”

Miss Peterson’s lip twitched, and she took a deep breath, “I don’t appreciate that kind of language in this room.”

“And I don’t appreciate you insinuating I did something to get my daughter taken away from me. Guess that makes us about even then,” Wynonna said, then added, “There are no legal issues you need to be aware of.”

“Alright then,” Miss Peterson said shifting uncomfortably under Wynonna’s gaze.

“We about done?”

“If you don’t have any questions for me.”

“You’re not from around here, are you?”

“I’m not sure what that has to do with anything,” Miss Peterson said, confused.

“I’m guessing, you’re just out of school, and there’s some program that helps pay off the loans if you work in a rural school, right?” The woman didn’t answer, but her lip twitched again. Wynonna continued, “If you were from Purgatory, you’d know all about the Earps, especially Crazy Wynonna Earp. I’ll give you the cliff notes version; I’m not someone you want to piss off.”

“Are you threatening me, Mrs. Earp?”

“Nope, I’m telling you, you don’t have to like me. Most people don’t,” she paused and then said, “You do have to treat my kid like any other kid. If you don’t…We’ll have a problem with each other. You can ask around town how having a problem with me goes,” she said with a cold smile.

“Yes, I think you’ve made yourself abundantly clear,” Miss Peterson replied.

“Awesome,” Wynonna said as she stood up, “For the record, it wouldn’t kill you to get a couple of adult sized chairs. My back is killing me now.”

 

***  
Waverly was reading to Alice on the couch when Wynonna got home. Alice popped off the couch and ran to her mother as she entered the room.

“Mama,” Alice said as she ran up to her. It had only been a few weeks since the night of the storm, but Alice seemed almost completely comfortable with Wynonna. She certainly had become more affectionate.

“Hey, kiddo,” she said, and Alice hugged her waist, “How was your day?”

“Aunt Waverly and I went for a walk, and we found these cool bugs,” Alice said as she released Wynonna’s waist.

Wynonna bent down and kissed the top of her daughter’s head. “I got to see your classroom today,” Wynonna told the little girl, “It’s pretty cool.”

“How did it go?” Waverly asked as she stood up from the couch.

“F-I-N-E,” Wynonna said sarcastically.

“That good?” Waverly said dryly.

“I know that spells, fine,” Alice said.

“I know you know that spells fine,” Wynona said as she reached down picked Alice up and threw her over her shoulder, “They told me about how smart you were.” Alice began to laugh. “Let’s go get some hot chocolate,” she said as she carried Alice into the kitchen.

Wynonna knew she probably shouldn’t have lost her cool with Miss Peterson, but she would be damned if Alice would be treated badly by some prissy little kindergarten teacher who would be gone as soon as she could escape back to the big city. She also had to admit the implication that Alice had been taken away from her, had struck a nerve.

She put Alice down in a chair in the kitchen. Alice was still laughing from being carried over Wynonna’s shoulder, which for some reason she found hysterical. Wynonna would take it. She’d do pretty much anything to hear her daughters laugh, which she decided might be the best sound in the entire world. 

 

***  
“Can I color until breakfast is ready?” Alice asked Wynonna.

“I’m pouring cereal in a bowl, Alice,” Wynonna said, “Doesn’t take a lot of prep time.”

The little girl seemed to consider this very seriously. “Can I color for ten minutes before I eat breakfast?” she asked.

Wynonna sighed. Her kid was definitely too smart for her own good, and probably Wynonna’s good as well. “Yeah, sure. But only ten minutes,” Wynonna said with a wag of her finger.

“Thank you, Mama,” Alice said as she ran upstairs to her room where all her crayons were.

Wynonna sat down at the table and took a sip of her coffee and shoved a spoonful of sugary cereal into her mouth. She did not doubt that Waverly would have something to say about the sugar content and dairy content of Alice’s breakfast, but since Wynonna could barely make toast, cereal would have to do. If Waverly wanted a complicated Sunday morning vegan breakfast, she would have to make it herself.

Wynonna glanced at the clock on the coffee maker. It was surprisingly late for Waverly not to be up. It wasn’t unheard of for Nicole to sleep in, and Wynonna certainly wouldn’t have been up if Alice hadn’t woken her up, but Waverly was usually up practically at dawn.

She wondered if her sister was feeling alright?

***  
Waverly was lost in the sensation of Nicole’s body pressed against hers and Nicole’s very talented hands. She couldn’t suppress a moan.

“Shh, Baby,” Nicole said softly as she nipped at Waverly’s ear, “We don’t want to wake anyone.”

Waverly turned her head and captured Nicole’s mouth. They were both lost in their own little world where only the two of them existed. Which is why they didn’t notice their bedroom door had opened until a small voice said, “Aunt Waverly, Aunt Nicole, can I show you my picture?”

Waverly’s head snapped towards the door. Alice was standing in the doorway holding a piece of paper. Both Waverly and Nicole let out a shriek when they saw the girl and desperately started pulling the sheets over their naked bodies.

“Alice go to your room,” Waverly cried a little more sharply than she intended.

“What are you doing?” the little girl asked.

“Go to your room!” Both women yelled.

Alice finally ran out of the room and down the hallway. Nicole jumped out of bed with a blanket wrapped around her and slammed the bedroom door.

“Oh my God!” Waverly exclaimed.

“Did that…Did she…Do you think…” Nicole stuttered.

“I think she did,” Waverly said.

“Oh my God.”

“Wynonna is going to kill us,” Waverly said.

***  
Wynonna was just about to yell up to Alice that her ten minutes were up when she heard a high-pitched scream that sounded like a combination of Waverly and Nicole. While not completely unheard of for noises to be coming out of that room, this didn’t sound like a noise of pleasure. 

She jumped up from the table and ran up the stairs. What the hell could be going on that they were screaming like that? Did something happen to Alice?

As she reached the top of the stairs, she heard a door slam and found Alice running towards her room.

“Alice are you ok?” Wynonna asked. The girl stopped. She looked upset.

“Aunt Waverly and Aunt Nicole yelled at me,” she replied.

“What? Why?” Wynonna said with a shake of her head.

“I was going to show them my picture, and they yelled at me,” Alice repeated.

The realization of what must have happened slowly began to dawn on Wynonna. “Did you go into their room?”

“Yeah, and they weren’t wearing any clothes.”

Wynonna took a deep breath and pinched the bridge of her nose. “Go to your room for a minute, Alice. I’ll be right in, and we’ll talk about it, okay?”

“Okay,” the girl said and ran into her room.

Wynonna let out a breath and marched down the hall towards her sister’s room.

***  
“She’s going to kill us,” Waverly repeated as she frantically pulled clothes on.

“It’s genetic,” Nicole mused as she pulled on pants, “It’s got to be genetic.” 

“So not helpful right now,” Waverly snapped.

“Sorry.”

There was a sudden banging on the door, and both Nicole and Waverly froze.

“Cover whatever bits you don’t want me to see because I’m coming in,” Wynonna’s voice called from the other side of the door. 

The door swung open, and Wynonna walked in and pulled the door closed behind her. She looked back and forth between Waverly and Nicole who had thankfully managed to get mostly covered.

“What the fuck, dude?” Wynonna finally asked.

“Wynonna I’m sorry,” Waverly said.

“So sorry,” Nicole added.

“We thought we locked the door.”

“Apparently not,” Wynonna said sarcastically.

“Is Alice alright?” Waverly asked.

“I don’t know. I’m going to go talk to her in a second,” Wynonna said and then took a deep breath and asked, “What exactly did she see?”

“Do you really want to know?” Nicole asked.

“No, I really really don’t,” Wynonna said, “But I suppose I should know if I have to explain what scissoring is to my five-year-old.”

“We were…you know…mostly just kissing…but I’m not sure if she saw…um…hand position,” Waverly said sheepishly.

“Do you want us to talk to her?” Nicole asked.

“I think you’ve done enough there Haught-Stuff,” Wynonna said sarcastically.

Nicole opened her mouth then closed it and nodded as if to say, “You have a point.”

“No, you two stay here and think about what you’ve done,” Wynonna said pointing her finger at them in turn.

 

***  
Wynonna found Alice sitting on her bedroom floor coloring. She looked up when Wynonna came into the room.

“Are Aunt Waverly and Aunt Nicole mad at me?” she asked.

Wynonna sat down on her daughter’s bed, “No, Kiddo, they’re not mad,” Wynonna said and patted the bed next to her, “Come sit with me.”

Alice jumped up on the bed next to Wynonna. “They seemed mad,” she said.

“No, you startled them is all,” Alice looked confused, so Wynonna added, “You know when someone jumps out and yells, ‘boo’ and you scream and jump?” Alice nodded. “That’s what happened to your Aunt Waverly and Nicole, they weren’t expecting to see you, and it scared them.”

“I didn’t mean to.”

Wynonna stroked her daughter’s hair. “I know you didn’t. But new rule, if a door is closed, you have to knock before you can open it.”

“I did knock,” Alice said petulantly.

“Did anybody say, ‘come in’?”

Alice shrugged, “No.”

“Okay, new, new rule, if a door is closed you knock and wait for someone to say, ‘come in’ before you can open it, okay?”

“Okay.” Wynonna let out a sigh. Maybe she dodged a bullet and Alice wouldn’t ask about what Waverly and Nicole had been doing. “Why weren’t they wearing clothes?” 

Wynonna should have known she wasn’t that lucky. “Well, Kiddo, some of it won’t make sense until your older okay, but I’m going to try and explain. Right now, you like everyone the same way, but when you get older,” Much, much older, Wynonna thought to herself, “You’re going to like different people in different ways and there’s probably going to be some people you like in a special way.”

“What kind of special way?”

“Like I said, it’s hard to explain. But it’s not the same way you like your friends or your family. And some people only like boys that way, and some people only like girls and some people like both.”  
“Aunt Waverly and Aunt Nicole like each other in the special way?”

“Yes, they do. And when you really, really like someone in that special way for a while sometimes you start to love them and then you want to get married.” Wynonna said relieved that Alice seemed to be understanding.

“But why were they naked? They looked like they were wrestling.”

“So, when you’re grown up, and you like someone in that special way it feels good to wrestle with them naked.”

“That’s weird,” Alice said, and then leaned in close to Wynonna and whispered, “Aunt Nicole was touching Aunt Waverly in her private place. You’re not supposed to touch people there.”

Wynonna suppressed a laugh since Alice looked so serious. “So those people you like in a special way, it feels good to touch them in their private places and let them touch you in yours. But that’s only when you grow up, and it’s important that you have permission to touch them there.” She reached over and picked Alice up and put her on her lap, “Right now, while you’re a kid, people shouldn’t be touching you there and if they try you need to tell me or Aunt Waverly or Aunt Nicole, okay? That’s important.”

“Okay, Elmo said, that if we didn’t like how someone was touching us, we should tell a grownup.”

Thank God for puppets, Wynonna thought.

“That’s right. And also, when you do grow up, I want you to know that just because someone feels that special way about you, doesn’t mean you have to feel the same way. And if someone wants to wrestle naked with you and you don’t want to, you never have to do it.”

“Okay.”

“Okay,” Wynonna said as she kissed her daughters head and lifted her off her lap. “You keep coloring. I’m going to go put your Aunt Waverly and Aunt Nicole out of their misery.”

***  
Waverly sat next to Nicole on the bed. They both looked vaguely sick to their stomachs. Nicole reached over and rubbed Waverly’s back in small circles.

“I’m sure she’s fine,” Nicole said, “I mean she’s not the first kid to walk in on adults having sex.”

“Yeah, but Wynonna is in there explaining the birds and the bees to her,” Waverly said sourly.

“Yeah…I mean it could be worse though.”

“Yeah, she could have walked in ten minutes earlier,” Waverly said, she couldn’t suppress a smile at the memory.

“Then Wynonna really would have killed us,” Nicole said with the same smile.

There was then a knock on the door, and it swung open. Wynonna stood leaning on the door frame her arms crossed.

“Is Alice alright?” Waverly asked.

“I’m not sure,” Wynonna said, her tone was serious, “There was so much crying and asking, ‘why?’ I think the college fund might have to go to therapy instead.”

Waverly turned pale, and Nicole legitimately looked like she might vomit any second. The corners of Wynonna’s mouth twitched, and finally, she couldn’t contain the laughter as she doubled over.

“You should see your faces,” she said, wiping tears from the corners of her eyes, “Of course she’s fine.”

Waverly stood up, “She’s alright? You’re a shit, Wynonna.” She walked over to Wynonna and started to whack Wynonna on the arm when Wynonna held up her hands.

“Hey, Hey, don’t you dare. I know exactly where those hands have been,” Wynonna said with that humorous glint in her eye.

Waverly shook her head. “You’re a huge shit.”

“But you love me anyway,” Wynonna said with a smile.

“What did you tell Alice?” Nicole asked.

“That when you get older, you’ll want to get naked and wrestle with someone.”

“You didn’t say that,” Nicole said incredulously. 

Wynonna shrugged. “More or less.”

“Um…Do you think that maybe we should talk to her too?” Nicole asked.

“No,” Wynonna said, “Because you’ll tell her some bullshit about when ‘two people love each other very much…’ You don’t have to love your naked wrestling partner, and I don’t want my kid thinking you do.”

“Are you sure she’s okay?” Waverly asked again.

“Look,” Wynonna said with a sigh, “You may not have to love your naked wrestling partners, but it’s nice when you do. You two do. And if the worst thing Alice ever sees is two people who are head over heels in love with each other having sex, then I can live with that,” Wynonna told them then added, “But keep the door locked during your freaky time from now on, capeesh?”

“Capeesh,” Waverly said, and Nicole also nodded in agreement.

***  
Wynonna held Alice’s hand tightly as she led her through the maze of other children running to and fro in front of the school. Waverly and Nicole followed close behind.

Alice didn’t seem all that excited to start kindergarten. It had taken Wynonna, Waverly, and Nicole to manage to get her dressed and out the door. She had cried in the truck on the way and now looked terrified of the other students.

“You’re going to have fun today, Alice,” Wynonna said, though she felt like she was lying to her kid which made her feel like shit.

“So much fun,” Waverly said.

“You’re going to meet new friends,” Nicole added.

Alice didn’t exactly look convinced by the adults’ assurances.

The group made their way inside the school and through the hallways to Alice’s classroom. Much to Wynonna’s chagrin, Miss Peterson was standing outside of the room greeting parents and kids.  
“Mrs. Earp,” she said, not sounding particularly enthused to see Wynonna again. She then bent down and turned her attention to Alice, “This must be Alice. How are you?”

Alice didn’t answer but instead clung to Wynonna’s leg. Wynonna placed her hand on the top of Alice’s head. “Alice don’t be rude. Answer your teacher,” she said kindly but firmly.

“Ok,” Alice mumbled.

“And who else did you bring with you besides your Mom? Not just every student gets a police escort,” she said with an insincere laugh as she glanced at Nicole who was in uniform.

“Aunt Waverly and Aunt Nicole,” Alice said a little more enthusiastically, then added, “They like each other in a special way.”

“Oh well…isn’t that…I mean…that’s fine.” Miss Peterson looked pale as she stood up straight.

Wynonna laughed while Waverly and Nicole looked embarrassed.

“So super glad you told her that, Wynonna,” Nicole said sarcastically.

“It’s fine,” Miss Peterson said then added in the same condescending tone she had used on Wynonna during their meeting, “We do our best to respect alternative lifestyles here.”

“Excuse me,” both Waverly and Nicole said at the same time. Nicole glared at the woman so hard that Wynonna half expected her to burst into flames.

“Alice, why don’t we hang up your backpack?” Wynonna said as she guided Alice past Miss Peterson. Waverly followed though she shot Peterson a glare. 

Nicole stayed behind and said, “Can I have a word?”

“She’s the Sherriff, by the way. Good luck,” Wynonna said to Peterson as they passed.

Wynonna helped Alice take off her backpack and hang it on the hook with her name on it. She glanced back at Nicole and Miss Peterson. The teacher looked appropriately cowed by Nicole who was pointing at the younger woman. Wynonna almost felt bad for her…almost.

Wynonna, Waverly, and Alice sat down at one of the mini tables. There were paper and crayons out, and Alice took some and began to draw. The other children mostly ran around the room wildly.

“Do you want to play with the other kids?” Waverly asked.

“No,” Alice said.

Nicole finally came over from talking to Miss Peterson. “Wow, Alice this is a cool classroom. Do you want to look around?”

“No,” Alice repeated.

Waverly and Nicole looked at Wynonna. Wynonna gave a shrug and said, “Leave her be.”

A short time later Miss Peterson clapped her hands to get everyone’s attention, “Ok, Mommies and Daddies,” her eyes fell on Waverly and Nicole, “And others,” she said awkwardly, “It’s time for class to start, so please say ‘goodbye’ to your child.”

Waverly hugged Alice first. There were tears in her eyes. “Have fun today, sweetie,” she said and immediately turned and left the classroom. Wynonna guessed that she was about to full on cry and she knew it wouldn’t be helpful for Alice to see her do it.

Nicole kneeled down and gave the girl a hug. “You have the best day, okay, Alice?” Alice shrugged and looked sullen. Nicole placed a kiss on the girl’s head and ruffled her hair as she stood up. “I’m going to check on Waves,” she said to Wynonna and also exited the classroom.

Wynonna smiled and kneeled down in front of her daughter. “I’ll see you later, Alice.”

“Don’t go! I want to go with you, Mama!” Alice said starting to cry.

“I know, Kiddo, but you have to stay here. You have to be in school.”

“Why?”

“Because that’s how you learn things,” Wynonna explained.

“I don’t want to. I want to stay with you. Don’t leave, Mama!”

“Alice, look at me,” the girl looked at Wynonna, “You have to stay here for now; I will come back and get you later.”

“But what if you don’t come back?”

Alice was doing her best to rip Wynonna’s heart out and damned if it wasn’t working. It made sense why Alice would fear her not coming back. Gus had brought her to strangers and then left. She probably thought that Wynonna would do the same thing. Wynonna placed her hands on her daughter’s shoulders. 

“Alice, I will never, ever, not come back for you, do you understand?” Alice didn’t exactly look convinced. “I swear to you Alice, I will be right on time to pick you up, okay?” The girl didn’t say anything. Wynonna hugged her daughter tightly and said, “I love you so much, Kiddo, I’ll see you later.” Alice wrapped her arms around Wynonna’s neck and wouldn’t let go.

Wynonna hated herself a little bit as she peeled Alice’s arms from around her neck and stood up. “I love you, Alice, have fun,” she said as she turned and walked out of the classroom. 

It took every ounce of self-control she had not to turn back around as she heard Alice cry, “Mama, don’t go,” repeatedly. But she didn’t turn, she even managed not to cry until she got outside of the school. That’s when the tears began to pour down her face.

Waverly and Nicole were standing waiting for Wynonna when she came out. Waverly came over and hugged her crying sister. Wynonna hugged her sister back. When the tears finally slowed down, Wynonna said, “That sucked balls, Baby Girl, big hairy ones.”

“Yeah it did,” Waverly said as she wiped tears from Wynonna’s face.

“So, Alice’s teacher is a bit of a…” Nicole said her voice trailing off.

“A bitch? Oh yeah,” Wynonna said.

“Do you think Alice will be okay?” Waverly asked.

“Yeah,” Wynonna said, “I think she’s going to be fine.” She wasn’t entirely sure she believed that.

“I have to get to the station,” Nicole said, “Are you guys okay?”

“Yeah we’ll be fine, Baby,” Waverly said.

Nicole looked at Wynonna who nodded. “Go protect and serve.”

Nicole gave Waverly a peck and waved goodbye as she walked to her cruiser.

“What do you say about getting some donuts?” Waverly asked as they watched Nicole.

“I think that may be the best idea you ever had, Baby Girl,” Wynonna said with a smile.

***  
Right on time Wynonna and Waverly entered the school. Wynonna had to suppress the urge to run down the hall to Alice’s classroom. She had no idea how Alice had handled the day. But on the bright side, she hadn’t gotten any phone calls from Miss Peterson.

There were only a couple other parents in the classroom when they arrived. At first, Wynonna didn’t see Alice, and she started to freak out, but then she scanned the room and saw her sitting in the corner with another little girl playing with baby dolls.

Wynonna felt Waverly grip her hand. She turned to her sister and smiled. “Looks like she made a friend,” Waverly said.

“Yeah, it does,” Wynonna said.

It took a minute, but finally, Alice noticed Wynonna and Waverly. She did abandon her new friend and dolls to run over to Wynonna.

“Mama!” Alice said as Wynonna bent down and scooped the girl up.

“Did you have fun?” Wynonna asked as she rested the little girl’s weight on her hip. Alice shrugged. “It looks like you made a friend.”

“Her name is Skylar,” Alice said.

“Is she nice?” Waverly asked. Alice nodded.

“Can we go home now?” Alice asked.

“Yeah, Kiddo, we can go home,” Wynonna told her.

Wynonna guessed that it was going to be hard for a while to drop Alice at school. But now at least she really did believe that Alice was going to be okay.

***  
Wynonna had firmly decided that the sound of Alice’s laugh was the best sound on the face of the earth. She and Waverly sat by the firepit as they watched Nicole run around making the most absurd horse noises as Alice clung to her back. Alice let out squeals of laughter.

She glanced over at her sister who was watching Nicole with a dreamy look in her eyes. Wynonna made a gagging noise.

“What?” Waverly asked.

“You two are so gross,” Wynonna said with a playful smile, “You talk about kids yet?”

“Sort of, why are you asking?”

“I can hear your ovaries sighing from here,” Wynonna said playfully.

“My ovaries aren’t making any noises, thank you very much,” Waverly said indignantly.

“It’s okay, Baby Girl, she’ll make a good mom,” Wynonna said more seriously.

“I know,” Waverly said, that dreamy look back in her eyes, “It’s just not so simple for us. We have to figure out the logistics.”

“Is there a turkey baster in your future?”

“Ew…” Waverly said as she made a disgusted face then added, “but maybe. We talked about adopting, but I kind of want to be pregnant at least once. Is that wrong?”

“You want to have cankles and have to pee every two minutes?” Wynonna said with a laugh, “No, it’s not wrong.”

“It doesn’t matter right now,” Waverly said with a wave of her hand, “We said we’d wait until after the wedding. We want to be married first.”

“And when the hell is that going to be?”

“Spring? Maybe? We talked about having it here outside.”

“It’s still warm enough,” Wynonna said, “Will be for a couple more months.”

“You’re not suggesting that we plan a wedding and have it before it gets cold?” Waverly asked disbelievingly.

“Why not? You guys don’t want a big one, right?”

“No…but still that’s a lot to organize.”

Wynonna looked back at her daughter, who was still laughing. “Look, Waves, we all put things off. We all missed out on…things,” she said wistfully. She turned so she was looking Waverly in the eyes. “Don’t waste any more time. You love Nicole, you want to marry her. Shit or get off the pot, already.”

“When did you get so profound?” Waverly asked with a laugh.

“Always was,” Wynonna said with a smile.

Nicole carried Alice over to Wynonna and set her down in front of her mother. “You have to give this pony a rest for a little while,” she said to the little girl.

“Yeah,” Wynonna said as she pulled Alice into her lap, “If you tire Aunt Nicole out too much, Aunt Waverly won’t be able to ride her later,” she said with a wink at Nicole.

“You give Aunt Waverly horsey rides?” Alice asked.

“No,” Nicole said as she glared at Wynonna, “Your Mama’s being silly.”

Nicole sat down next to Waverly and Wynonna watched as Waverly leaned against her fiancée. Nicole, in turn, placed a kiss against Waverly’s temple. Wynonna smiled. As much crap as she gave them, she was truly happy for them. 

She looked around. Her daughter was nestled in her arms; her baby sister was sitting next to the woman she loved. Life was pretty good at the moment.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you again to everyone who's read, and especially who has commented. I couldn't resist the humor of Alice walking in on Nicole and Waverly. I think given her personality, Wynonna would be pretty chill about it and explaining it to Alice.


	6. Chapter 6

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It's a WayHaught wedding...I think that's all anyone really needs to know.

“You ready, Baby Girl?” Wynonna asked.

Waverly turned her head towards her sister. She was simultaneously the most calm and the most nervous she had ever been in her life. She felt completely grounded and in the moment, and she also felt like the slightest breeze might blow her away.

“I’ve never been more ready for anything in my life,” she said. It was true. She felt similar to the way she had felt the first time she kissed Nicole, both completely terrified and also absolutely sure she was doing the right thing. She was completely ready to be Nicole’s wife. If she knew nothing else, she knew that without a doubt.

A smile spread across Wynonna’s face, and she held her arm out for Waverly to take. “Well let’s get you hitched then.”

Waverly took her sister’s arm and allowed herself to be led off the porch. They reached the end of the aisle just as Alice had finished her…well, it was supposed to be a walk, but she mostly ran up the aisle throwing flowers at the wedding guests. She was currently being corralled by Gus and Robin who were sitting in the front row. Waverly smiled. If nothing else no one could deny that Alice was Wynonna’s daughter.

Nicole stood at the end of the aisle with Nedley, their arms linked similarly to Waverly and Wynonna. At first, neither Waverly or Nicole had been thrilled with the idea of being “given away.” It seemed so old-fashioned and patriarchal. But after talking and thinking about it, they had come to the conclusion that they weren’t being given away, but instead being walked to their future by someone who was significant in shaping their past. 

Nicole had asked Nedley and Waverly remembered him trying to hide the tears in his eyes as he agreed. Waverly had thought about asking Gus, but if she was honest, she knew in her heart Wynonna was the most significant person in her life. 

The music changed, and Waverly watched as Nicole started up the aisle. She hadn’t seen more than the back of Nicole since the day before. They weren’t superstitious but had decided it was more meaningful to only really see each other when they were standing together about to say their vows.

Waverly watched her walk up the aisle. She seemed calm. In fact, she was rubbing the back of Nedley’s hand, as if she was reassuring him. Leave it to Nicole to be calming down the person walking her down the aisle on her own wedding day. 

Nicole and Nedley reached the end of the aisle where Jeremy was standing waiting. She turned and looked down the aisle expectantly. Waverly’s heart skipped a beat. 

“Come on,” Wynonna said, “Let’s get this show on the road.”

“Wynonna…” Waverly said with a little hitch in her voice. There was so much she wanted to say to her sister at that moment. The biggest one was, thank you. She wanted to thank Wynonna for walking her down the aisle. For coming home all those years ago…for loving her when Waverly didn’t think anyone else did.

“Nope,” Wynonna said with a shake of her head, “You are not going to start crying before we even get you up to the altar.” 

Waverly took a deep breath and nodded. Wynonna smiled and gave her a wink. They began walking in step. 

Waverly thought it was both the longest and shortest journey she had ever taken. She watched Nicole watch her walk up the aisle. Nicole had the same look on her face she had had the day Waverly had first kissed her-hopeful, expectant, but also a little nervous.

They reached the end, and Wynonna kissed Waverly on the forehead and stepped to the side. Waverly turned to Nicole. She smiled. “Hi,” she said softly.

“Hi,” Nicole said returning Waverly’s wide smile.

“Um…that’s my cue, right?” Jeremey asked softly. Both women turned their attention to him and nodded. He cleared his voice and said louder, “Dearly beloved, we gather here today to witness the marriage of Waverly and Nicole. And I don’t think I’m the only one who thinks, it’s about fricken time.” The guests laughed as did Nicole and Waverly.

“The first time I met Waverly she hit me over the head. At that moment I didn’t think she would become my best friend, but she has.” Some of the guests let out awkward laughs as if they weren’t sure if it was a joke. “And I was so honored when she and Nicole asked me to officiate today. When I heard about how they had met in a beautiful lesbian por-“ he cut off suddenly.

“My kid is here,” Wynonna whispered softly but harshly. Waverly couldn’t see Wynonna, but the way Jeremy stopped short, she guessed that Wynonna was glaring at him. Waverly couldn’t suppress a little giggle.

“A beautiful lesbian love story,” Jeremy corrected, “I knew they were meant to be. Now I think they might have a few things to say to one another. Nicole?” 

Nicole turned and handed her bouquet to Nedley then turned back and took Waverly’s hand. She took a deep breath and said, “Waverly, I don’t know how to tell you how much I love you. There aren’t words enough,” she smiled, “I thought I had loved before I met you,” she paused then continued, “And maybe I had, but I have never loved anyone or anything the way I love you,’ she said emphatically. “Before I met you there was no one and nothing that I wasn’t ultimately willing to walk away from, but…” she trailed off and then said with a hitch in her voice, “I could never walk away from you.”

Waverly watched as Nicole smiled though there were tears in her eyes. Waverly had never felt more loved in her entire life, and she fought to keep the tears from falling from her own eyes.

Nicole cleared her throat and continued, “Waverly Grace Earp, I, Nicole Rayleigh Haught, promise to always be by your side. I will never walk away, I will always be there for you. Through good times and bad. No matter what may occur. This is my vow.”

Jeremey smiled and turned and said, “Waverly?”

Waverly wiped the corner of her eyes and let out a breath, “Jeez Nicole, way to make that a tuff act to follow,” she said with a little laugh. All the guests laughed, as did Nicole. Waverly turned and handed her bouquet to Wynonna who to Waverly’s surprise had tears in her eyes. She then turned back to Nicole and took her hands.

She took a deep breath and began, “Nicole, I know the super romantic thing to say is that I fell in love with you the moment I met you, but I didn’t,” Waverly paused then added playfully, “I thought you were really, really hot,” everyone laughed, “But I didn’t love you,” she said more seriously. “I think I fell in love with you that day in your cruiser. After we had that stupid fight, do you remember?” Waverly asked, and Nicole nodded. “You followed me to make sure I didn’t walk ten miles home in the freezing cold. You were kind to me even after I had been nasty to you,” she paused and took another deep breath, “Before I met you, I thought that no one would like me if I wasn’t happy or smiling. Everything I did was to make other people like me, but you were nice to me even when I was short with you. And I realized that I didn’t have to be happy with you, I didn’t have to be anything. I could be myself. You were the kind of person who accepted me no matter what, and that just made me fall in love with you. And I hoped I could be that same kind of person for you.”

Waverly squeezed Nicole’s hand’s tight. Tears were streaming down both of their faces now. “Nicole Rayleigh Haught, I, Waverly Grace Earp, promise to always be myself with you. I promise to be brave enough to be always truthful with you about the good and the bad. And I promise that you can always be yourself with me. You can tell me anything, and I will always really, really love you. This is my vow.”

Nicole just smiled and started to lean towards Waverly when Jeremey interrupted. “Hey,” he said, “None of that yet. Don’t steal my thunder,” he paused and said, “Rings?”

Nicole turned to Nedley and Waverly to Wynonna and retrieved the rings. Waverly smiled as Nicole slipped the ring on her finger and then she, in turn, slipped one on Nicole’s hand.

“Now by the power vested in me by The Church of the Flying Spaghetti Monster, I pronounce you wife, and wife,” he paused and smiled, “Now you may kiss.”

Waverly wasn’t sure who had kissed who. All Waverly did know was she was kissing her wife…She sure did like the sound of that. 

The kiss might have gone on longer than a typical first kiss because they were finally interrupted by Wynona groaning and saying, “We have all night to be nauseated by you two making out. Let these people have a couple of drinks first.”

Nicole and Waverly separated, and they both laughed and gave slightly embarrassed smiles. Nicole rested her forehead against Waverly’s for a moment though and stroked her cheek.

“Hi, wife,” Waverly said.

“Hi, wife,” Nicole replied.

***  
Wynonna stood up and tapped a knife against the side of her glass. She thought doing this might be slightly easier if she had real champagne in the glass as opposed to the sparkling apple cider shit, but it was what it was.

Everyone sitting at the tables turned and looked at her. Nicole and Waverly said they were just inviting family and a few friends, but Wynonna’s definition of a few was apparently smaller than either Nicole or Waverly. It was less than two dozen people, but Wynonna still felt a bit self-conscious with all those eyes on her.

“Um…I supposed most of you know me, I’m Wynonna, Waverly’s sister,” she paused and then said, “Waverly is forcing me to give a toast, and if you do know me you know I’m not much of a planner, so this is going to be a bit off the cuff,” most of the guests laughed. Wynonna wasn’t sure whether to be insulted or not, but she continued as she looked at Waverly who was sitting with Nicole’s arm draped over her shoulders, “Waverly, Baby Girl, you are my favorite person in the world, besides my kid. And I think it’s safe to say that I would not be standing here if not for you,” Waverly smiled back at Wynonna, “All I have ever wanted for you is to be happy and loved. I am glad you found someone you truly love,” she paused and then added wryly, “Even if I am sick of walking in on that love,” everyone including Waverly and Nicole laughed.

Wynonna then turned her attention to Nicole, “Nicole, I know I haven’t always been the nicest to you, and I’ve given you a lot,” she paused and then said, “Could someone cover Alice’s ears?” Robin jumped up and pressed his hands over Alice’s ears like earmuffs while the little girl looked confused, “I know I’ve given you a lot of shit over the years,” she gave Robin a thumbs up and he released the girl and sat back down, “But you’ve always taken it, because you love Waverly. I don’t think it’s any secret that I don’t think anyone in the world is good enough for my baby sister,” she paused and then smiled, “but you come closest. I’m happy she found you,” Nicole looked like she might cry. Wynonna smiled and then said as she held up her glass, “So to Waverly and Nicole, mazel tov.”

***  
Wynonna stood and watched the people on the dance floor. Of course, Waverly and Nicole were wrapped in each other’s arms swaying slowly to the music. Robin and Jeremy were dancing with each other, and Chrissy Nedley was dancing with her father. Even Gus was out on the floor, though she was less dancing and more holding Alice’s hand while the little girl danced around her.

“You look like you need a drink.”

Wynonna turned and found Mercedes standing next to her holding out a glass. Wynonna smiled at her old friend, but shook her head and said, “No thanks.”

Mercedes pouted. “I forgot you’re on the wagon. Boo, you bitch,” she said not unkindly, then added, “More for the rest of us.” She shrugged and downed one of the glasses she was holding.

“There’s the spirit,” Wynonna said.

“They are cute, aren’t they?” Mercedes said with a nod of her head towards Waverly and Nicole.

“Yeah, they are,” Wynonna said somewhat wistfully. She was absolutely happy for them, but if she was honest in her heart of hearts, she was also a little jealous. She wasn’t a white wedding kind of gal, but she missed being held by someone.

“Maybe I should switch to women,” Mercedes said casually. Wynonna turned her head and raised an eyebrow. “I mean it’s not working out with men. I’ve hit on every fireman here and no takers, maybe it’s time to try something else.”

“Are you hitting on me, Mercedes?” Wynonna asked.

“Are you into it?” Mercedes replied mischievously.

“It takes more than one drink. I’m cheap, but I’m not that cheap,” Wynonna said with a teasing smile.

“I’ll keep that in mind,” Mercedes said. They stood together and watched the couples dance. Alice ran over to Waverly and Nicole. They each took one of Alice’s hands and began to dance with the girl. “I can’t believe you have a kid,” Mercedes said.

“You and me both,” Wynonna replied.

“She’s cute…And I don’t like kids.”

“Thanks…I think.”

“Oh look, I think there’s a firefighter I missed…How do I look?” Mercedes said, and she posed as one of Nicole’s firefighter friends walked across the edge of the dance floor.

“Just the right amount of easy,” Wynonna replied.

“Excellent. Wish me luck,” Mercedes said as she scampered after the fireman.

“Go get ‘um tiger,” Wynonna called after her. The poor guy had no idea what was in store for him.

Wynonna smiled and walked out onto the dance floor. She walked over to Nicole, Waverly, and Alice.

“Dance with me, Mama,” Alice said.

“Dance with you?” Wynonna scooped up the little girl and put her on her hip. “Okay, I’ll dance with you,” she said to the little girl. Alice held out her hand for her mother to take. Wynonna grabbed her daughter’s hand and spun them around, so Alice let out a peal of laughter.

 

***  
As the evening went on Nicole found herself both wholly exhausted and oddly energized. She had never been so completely happy in her entire life, and she was glad to be sharing the day with family and friends, but she also kind of wanted to get Waverly alone. Waverly was, of course, playing the perfect host, and Nicole couldn’t bear to stop her since she seemed so happy, but Nicole needed a break from talking to people. She snuck off to the side as Waverly was talking to Nedley and Robin. 

Nicole found Wynonna sitting at one of the tables with Alice fast asleep in her lap. “Someone’s tuckered out,” she said.

“Yeah, Alice seems pretty tired too,” Wynonna said humorously.

“Mind if I sit?”

Wynonna motioned to the chair next to her and said, “You did pay for the rented chairs, seems like you should be able to sit in them.”

Nicole sat down. The two women sat in silence for a few moments before Nicole said, “About what you said with the toast…” her voice trailed off. She wasn’t quite sure how to convey to Wynonna what she had said had meant to her.

“I meant it,” Wynonna replied. “No one is good enough for Waverly.”

Nicole laughed and said, “I agree.”

“And that’s part of the reason why you come closest,” Wynonna said with a smile. She glanced down to make sure Alice was still asleep before continuing. “You’re a good person, Nicole. A much better one then I’ll ever be. You love my sister. Hell, you love my kid like she was your own. Your Sherriff-Bossy Pants routine will never not piss me off, but I’m glad Waverly found you. I don’t know where she’d be if she hadn’t. Fuck, I don’t know where any of us would be if she hadn’t. I’m glad she married you.”

“Waverly and Alice aren’t the only Earps I love,” Nicole replied.

Wynonna laughed. “You know that’s the second time I’ve been hit on by a chick tonight.” Nicole raised an eyebrow but didn’t say anything. “I love you too Haught-stuff.”

“The puns about my last name are never going to stop, are they?”

“Your name is Nicole Rayleigh Haught, frankly, you’re lucky I don’t give you more shit than I already do,” Wynonna said with a grin.

Nicole smiled and nodded. “Fair enough.”

“What are you two sneaky little squirrels doing hiding over here?” Waverly said from behind Nicole. Nicole turned to find her wife attempting to look angry at her and Wynonna but not really succeeding.

“I have an unconscious child on me,” Wynonna said.

“And I was just…um…,” Nicole mumbled.

“Smooth, Haught,” Wynonna said.

“Sorry,” Nicole said.

“Well, you’re forgiven,” Waverly said as she leaned down and kissed Nicole, “But you might have to make it up to me later.”

“You two are going to get most the gooeyness out of your systems while you’re on your honeymoon, right?” Wynonna asked.

“We make no promises,” Nicole said.

“You guys staying in a hotel tonight, right?”

“Yeah, Jeremy and Robin are going to drive us later into the city,” Waverly said.

“So, I won’t get to use the earplugs I bought, shucks,” Wynonna said sarcastically. She shifted Alice in her lap who still didn’t wake up. “I’m going to bring the munchkin in, I think.”

“Already?” Waverly said, surprised.

“She’s practically in a coma, Waves,” Wynonna said.

“But…But,” Waverly stuttered. Nicole stood up and took her wife’s hand, “I’m not ready to say goodbye.”

“You guys are only going to be gone a week,” Wynonna said as she stood up, hefting most of Alice’s weight on to her shoulder.

“I know…” Waverly’s voice trailed off.

“We’re going to miss you guys, I think is what Waves means,” Nicole said.

“Yeah, I’m sure you guys are going to be thinking about us a ton,” Wynonna said sarcastically.

“I will…we will,” Waverly said. She stepped forward and hugged her sister, careful not to disturb the sleeping child. “I love you Wynonna.”

“I love you too, Baby Girl,” Wynonna said as she pressed a kiss to Waverly’s temple, “It was a beautiful wedding. You have fun?” Waverly nodded and stepped back from her sister wiping her eyes. Wynonna held her one free arm open. “Come on, Haught, don’t leave me hanging.”

Nicole stepped forward and hugged Wynonna. If someone had told her years ago when she first started dating Waverly that she would one day be hugging Wynonna Earp on her wedding day, moments after Wynonna had said to her that she loved her, she would have laughed in their face. But today it seemed like the most natural thing in the world.

They separated, and Nicole stepped closer to Waverly and wrapped her arm around the smaller woman’s shoulders.

“You’ll give Alice kisses from us, and tell her we love her,” Waverly said.

“I will, Baby Girl,” Wynonna said with a gentle smile. “Now go on and enjoy your damned wedding reception.” And with that, she turned and started walking towards the house with Alice cradled in her arms.

Nicole watched her go. She squeezed Waverly tightly and smiled at her wife. “They’ll be ok,” she said. She could practically feel Waverly’s worry coming off her like radiation.

“How’d you know what I was thinking?” Waverly asked with a slight smile.

“Because I know you,” Nicole said as she pressed her forehead against Waverly’s.

“Is that right?” Waverly said playfully.

“It is,” Nicole said with a nod and then caught Waverly’s lips with her own. The kiss ended, and Nicole said, “Later I’ll show you exactly how well I know you.”

“Is that a promise?” Waverly asked with a grin.

“Baby, that’s a vow.”

 

***  
Who knew that training to kill revenants had the unexpected side effect of giving Wynonna the ability to lug her offspring around with one arm. It came in handy undressing the practically comatose Alice, who barely woke up as Wynonna stripped off her flower girl dress and put her in her pajamas.

“Mama, read story,” Alice murmured as Wynonna laid her down. 

Wynonna wanted to ask the girl if she was insane, but instead, she sighed and said, “Once upon a time there was a princess named Alice. Princess Alice had a Mama who loved her very much, but there were ogres in the kingdom so, to keep her safe Alice’s Mama sent her to live with her magical Aunt Gus. But with the help of Alice’s Aunt Waverly and her Aunt Nicole and their friends, the ogres all were banished, and Princess Alice got to come home. And they all lived happily ever after…the end.”

Wynonna looked down at Alice. She was sleeping soundly, probably not hearing most of the story. The girl had stuck her thumb in her mouth, which she seemed to do when she was especially tired. Wynonna figured she should start saving up for the braces now.

Wynonna stroked her hair and leaned down and kissed her daughter, “I love you, Alice.”

“Love you, Mama,” Alice mumbled back without opening her eyes.

Wynonna felt her heart do a somersault. It was the first time Alice had returned an “I love you,” from Wynonna. She wanted to yell from the rooftops that her daughter loved her, but she resisted the urge and simply got up and walked out of the room quietly so as not to wake the sleeping child.

She made her way downstairs with plans for a cup of coffee and possibly eating ice cream out of the tub. She jumped as she walked in the kitchen and found Gus had the same idea. She was sitting at the kitchen table sipping coffee out of a mug.

“Gus, what are you doing in here?” Wynonna asked.

“I could ask you the same thing,” Gus replied.

“I just put Alice down,” Wynonna told her.

“I’m an old woman, I figured I’d come in and let those kids have some fun,” she said.

“You’re not that old.”

“I feel that old,” she said ruefully. She paused and then added, “If you want to go back out. I’ll keep an ear out for Alice.”

Wynonna shook her head and sat down. “I’m partied out.”

“Words I never thought I’d hear from your mouth,” Gus said wryly.

“Yeah well, I never thought I’d be telling my daughter stories about a princess, either. Things change, Gus,” Wynonna said with a sigh.

“She seems happy,” Gus said.

“Waverly? Yeah, she’s over the moon happy. She married the love of her life.”

Gus shook her head. “Alice,” she said, “Alice seems happy.”

Wynonna shrugged. “Things have gotten easier.” 

“You’re a good mother, Wynonna,” Gus said simply. 

Someone could have knocked over Wynonna with a feather. She could count the number of times she had gotten praise from Gus in her life on one hand and have fingers left over. The fact that Gus was praising her parenting skills blew her mind, especially since Wynonna still wasn’t so sure how great they were herself. “I don’t know about that,” Wynonna said.

“You are. You remember that for when things get hard again because they will,” Gus continued.

“Always a ray of sunshine, Gus,” Wynonna said sarcastically.

“I won’t blow smoke up your ass, Wynonna. It’s not in my nature. Things will get hard again, then they’ll get easier and then hard. It’s the way of things. You remember you’re a good mother during those hard times and they’ll go easier,” she explained.

“What if I’m not a good mother? Waverly and Nicole practically raised her the first month she was here. And I still feel like I’m making everything up as I go along.” Wynonna said.

“I watched her today. She’s happy and healthy, and she adores you Wynonna. You’re doing something right. And you’re always going to feel like you’re making things up because you are. That never changes.” Gus patted Wynonna’s hand.

“Thanks, Gus,” Wynonna said. It didn’t seem like “thanks” was enough to convey how much Gus’s words meant to her, but it was all she had.

In her wildest dreams, Wynonna had never thought she’d get to walk her sister down the aisle, have her daughter tell her that she loved her and have Gus McCready praise her in her lifetime, let alone all in the same day. 

“It was a lovely day,” Gus said.

“Yes, it was,” Wynonna agreed. Yes, it was.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> As always thanks for the comments and kudos. I obviously used the canon middle name of Rayleigh for Nicole, because it is kind of perfect. I have given Waverly the non-canon middle name of Grace. It seems like something that Michelle would do, giving her angel daughter the middle name Grace. So it will be my headcanon until proven otherwise. And yes, btw, The Church of the Flying Spaghetti Monster really exists and they can ordain you to perform weddings. It seemed like the kind of church Jeremy would pick after Nicole and Waverly asked him to officiate.


	7. Chapter 7

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A new deputy in town sparks feelings for Wynonna. Can Wynonna balance being a woman and also a mom? Is she finally over Doc and ready to move on?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you, everyone, who has been reading, and leaving all those kudos and lovely comments. I, as always, deeply appreciate them and knowing that people are enjoying this does help give me inspiration to write. Though to be honest in a large way this story less me writing it and more it simply escaping my brain. 
> 
> Delta_One made a comment on the last chapter expressing hope that would be more of this story and also hoping that there would be the story of WayHaught's marriage, I responded to that comment but I also wanted to put my response to that here for those that might have missed it. There will certainly be more of this story. I'm not sure how many more chapters it will take to tell this story (at least a few more), but I do have a pretty clear idea of how I want to end it. This one is primarily Wynonna's story, but I do have an idea for a sequel or at least a story in the same continuity as this one that focuses on Nicole and Waverly, their marriage, their own quest to start a family and how their both less then ideal childhoods shape that. So I hope everyone will stick around for the end of this story and follow me into the next one. Thanks again.

“I see you graduated top of your class at the academy,” Nicole said to the dark-haired man sitting across from her.

“Yes, Ma’am,” the man replied. He was sitting rod straight in his chair, in a dark blue neatly pressed suit. He was obviously a little nervous, but also a bit cocky about his resume. He reminded Nicole of herself when she had interviewed for the deputy position all those years ago.

“So did I,” Nicole said and then added, “You don’t have to call me Ma’am.”

“Yes, Sherriff,” he replied with a charming smile.

Nicole gave a short laugh and said, “Come on. I’ll show you around the station a bit, and then we can really chat.” She got up from her desk, and he followed her out of her office. “This is the bullpen,” she said motioning around the room.

Suddenly there was a blur that ran across the room. The blur practically knocked Nicole over as it ran and wrapped its arms around her waist.

“Alice?” Nicole said, surprised.

“Hi,” Alice replied with a grin as she looked up at Nicole. She had lost a couple teeth in the weeks since Nicole and Waverly had returned from their honeymoon. She looked especially cute with no front teeth.

“What are you doing here?”

Alice shrugged. 

“Is this your daughter, Sherriff?” the man asked. Nicole had almost forgotten he was standing there.

“No,” Nicole said as she bent down and picked Alice up, “This is Alice Michelle, my favorite niece.” She grinned.

“I’m you’re only niece,” Alice said with a giggle.

“You have a point, but you’re still my favorite,” Nicole said as she pressed a kiss to the little girl’s cheek, “Say hi to Sam.”

“Hi,” Alice said.

Sam held his hand out to the little girl and said, “It’s a pleasure to meet you, Alice Michelle.” Alice giggled and shook his hand. Nicole placed her back on the floor.

“Where’s your Aunt Waverly?” Nicole asked. Waves was supposed to pick Alice up from school that day.

Alice shrugged again, “Mama got me.”

“Okay, where’s your mom?”

“She’s schlepping kid crap out of her truck while her offspring runs away from her. Even though she said not to,” A voice called from the doorway to the station. Nicole looked up, and Wynonna was standing there with some sort of shoebox diorama balanced in one hand and Alice’s backpack hooked over the other arm. She placed all the stuff down on the counter of the station and said, “Alice what did I say?”

“To wait for you,” the little girl replied sheepishly.

“And what did you do?”

“I ran inside…But you’re slow Mama, and I wanted to see Aunt Nicole,” Alice explained.

Wynonna walked around the counter towards her daughter. “You’re lucky you’re cute, kid,” she said as she bent down and placed a kiss on her daughter’s head. “You’ve got to stop running off, okay?” Wynonna added.

“Ok,” Alice replied.

“I thought Waves was picking her up?” Nicole asked.

Wynonna shrugged in a manner not dissimilar to her daughter. “She got caught up in some meeting about the historical society. Said she’d pick Alice up from here in a bit since you’re being a…” she covered Alice’s ears with her hands, “bitch and making me do paperwork.” She released the girl’s ears.

“So sorry that I make you read the reports you supposedly ‘write,’” Nicole replied sarcastically. Wynonna never wrote any of the official reports that Nicole filed for Wynonna’s cases. Usually, Jeremy started them, and Nicole turned them into something that could be submitted. She did, however, force Wynonna to occasionally read them in case someone like Bunny Loblaw questioned what exactly Wynonna did for the department.

Sam cleared his throat next to Nicole.

“Right, sorry,” Nicole said flustered. She had almost forgotten about the potential deputy standing next to her. “Wynonna, this is Sam Donovan, he’s interviewing for the deputy position,” She said motioning to Sam, and she then motioned back to Wynonna and said, “Sam this is Wynonna Earp, she’s a special consultant to the PPD, and she’s also my sister-in-law…. And Alice’s mom obviously.”

“Nice to meet you,” Sam said holding out his hand. 

Wynonna took it and shook it. “Yeah, sure.”

“Earp? Like Wyatt Earp?” Sam asked as he released her hand.

“Yeah, he was my great-times-a-few-grandfather,” Wynonna said suspiciously.

“That’s so cool,” he replied.

“You’d be surprised,” Wynonna replied dryly.

“What exactly do you consult on?”

“Huh?”

“You’re a special consultant?”

“Gas leaks,” Nicole said jumping in, “Purgatory has an especially high rate of...gas leaks. Both Jeremy, who you met before, and Wynonna help with the gas leaks.”

“Gas leaks?” Sam said unbelievingly.

“Yeah,” Wynonna said wryly, “I’m like Beano.”

Nicole let out a nervous laugh and said, “That’s our Wynonna, always a kidder.” She then shot Wynonna a glare.

Sam to his credit did give a short laugh and smile. “I’m sure you’re excellent at getting rid of gas,” he said.

Thankfully Waverly made her appearance at that moment. “Sorry, sorry,” she said as she rounded the counter and walked over, “Bunny Loblaw is giving me such a headache over using the building on Main Street for the historical society.”

“Why hasn’t that woman died yet?” Wynonna asked.

“Because she feeds off our hate for her?” Nicole offered.

“You’re not supposed to say you hate people,” Alice said.

“You’re right kiddo,” Wynonna said, “But Bunny Loblaw is an exception.”

“Why?”

“Because she’s evil, incarnate,” Wynonna said. Alice seemed to accept this.

“Oh, hello there,” Waverly said as she noticed Sam.

“Sorry…again…” Nicole said. “Waves, this is Sam Donovan. He’s interviewing for deputy. Sam, this is my wife, Waverly.”

Waverly and Sam shook hands. “Okay, right a wife…” he mumbled, then added, “It’s very nice to meet you, Mrs. Haught.”

“Oh, well…it’s technically still Earp. We haven’t quite decided what we’re doing with the last names,” Waverly said, then added, “And just plain Waverly is fine.”

“Yes, Ma’am,” Sam replied.

“Oh, I just got Ma’amed. I guess I’m officially an old married woman now,” Waverly said with a wide grin.

“Just the married part,” Nicole said sweetly.

Wynonna made a gagging noise, and both Sam and Alice laughed. Though Sam had the good sense to turn slightly and try to hide it as a cough.

“Anyway,” Waverly said as she shot a glare at Wynonna, “I suppose we should be getting home.” 

“Come here kiddo,” Wynonna said as she pulled the little girl close and gave her a hug and a kiss, “I love you. See you later.”

“Love you, Mama,” Alice replied as she kissed and hugged Wynonna back.

“I’ll walk you guys out,” Nicole said. “Wynonna, why don’t you show Sam where the coffee machine is,” she said as she began to help Waverly gather up Alice’s stuff and walked them towards the door.

“Sure thing, Haught-Pants,” Wynonna said sarcastically, “Remember not to make out in front of my kid,” she added.

Nicole turned and shot her a glare as she followed Waverly and Alice out of the station. Perhaps leaving her potential deputy alone with Wynonna Earp was not a good idea.

***  
“And this is the font of all that is good,” Wynonna said as she pointed out the coffee machine. “How do you take it?”

“Black is fine,” Sam said with a smile. 

“Man after my own heart,” she said and returned the smile. She couldn’t quite help herself. There was something warm and charming about his grin and his hazel eyes. She poured two cups and handed one to Sam.

“Thank you,” he said and took a sip. “Your daughter is adorable.”

“Yeah,” Wynonna said, “I think I’ll keep her. Lost the receipt anyway.” She shrugged.

“Any tips on impressing Sherriff Haught?” He asked. “I’m kind of nervous.”

Wynonna shook her head. “Don’t tell her I told you, but Nicole’s good people. She’s super fair. Don’t be a dickhead and you’ll be fine.”

He smiled. “Thanks, good to know.” They fell into a slightly awkward silence. Sam broke it by saying, “The Sheriff’s wife is your…?”

“Sister,” Wynonna finished. “Yeah.”

“She seems lovely as well.”

“Everybody likes Waves. It’s impossible not too,” Wynonna said and then added, “What was that weird, ‘right a wife,’ comment about anyway?” 

“Oh…um…” Sam sputtered, “I just assumed that when Sherriff Haught said you were her sister in law that she was married to your brother or something like that, but that didn’t make much sense.”

“I don’t have a brother,” Wynonna said.

Sam sighed. “It’s stupid, but I guess when someone says their married my knee-jerk assumption is that they’re married to someone of the opposite sex,” he explained, “I know it’s wrong and I need to break it,” he added.

“Do you have a problem with gay marriage?” Wynonna asked pointedly.

“Not at all. I think it’s great.”

“And why wouldn’t it make sense for Nicole to be married to my non-existent brother?” Wynonna asked as she eyed him suspiciously.

“Because…you know…she just struck me…as a lesbian,” he said sheepishly.

“So, you just assumed she was gay?” Wynonna asked incredulously.

“Well...yeah,” he said, “Is that offensive?” He appeared genuinely concerned he had offended Wynonna and by extension Nicole.

“I…I don’t know,” Wynonna said, “But it sure seems like it is,” she added firmly.

“I’m so sorry,” he said.

Just as Wynonna started to open her mouth, Nicole walked into the room. “How’s everything going?”

“Um...great,” Sam said with a smile that didn’t quite reach his eyes.

“Yeah everything’s just ducky,” Wynonna replied as she sipped her coffee.

Nicole shot Wynonna a look as if to ask what was going on since there was palpable tension in the room, but Wynonna just shrugged. “Well then, I guess we should sit down and talk, Sam. And Wynonna should start going through reports.”

“Sounds great, Sherriff,” Sam said enthusiastically.

Nicole shot Wynonna another look as she led Sam out of the room, but Wynonna still didn’t say anything. 

Wynonna sighed when they left. She was actually kind of relieved that Sam had put his foot in his mouth. Up until that point he had been nice to her kid, pleasant to Waverly and seemed to respect Nicole, it was good that there was a reason not to like him now. Because Wynonna Earp really didn’t want to like the tall dark haired, handsome cop. The only problem was she still did.

***  
Nicole was standing at the sink doing the dishes. She glanced over her shoulder as Wynonna walked into the room.

“Where’s Waves?” Wynonna asked.

“She went upstairs to read some old journal Mercedes gave her from the Gardner house,” Nicole said as she put a dish in the rack, “I told her I’d clean up.”

“This historical society thing, I guess she’s really going to make it happen,” Wynonna said.

“Looks like it,” Nicole said with a smile, “I’m so proud of her.”

“Hey,” Wynonna said as she leaned against the counter next to Nicole, “Did you hire that guy?”

“Sam?” Nicole asked, “Not officially but I’m going to. Why?” Wynonna had never seemed remotely curious about the coming and going of the PPD staff before.

“I don’t think you should.”

“Why not?” Nicole said as she stopped washing the dishes and turned her full attention on Wynonna.

“He just said some weird stuff about you and Waves,” Wynonna said with a shrug.

“What kind of weird stuff?” 

“He said that when you introduced me as your sister in law that he assumed you were married to my brother,” she paused and then added, “he apologized for having knee-jerk assumptions or some bullshit, but that’s wrong right?”

“Does he seem to have a problem with gay marriage?”

Wynonna shook her head and said, “No, he said he thought it was great.”

“Okay…” Nicole said, “Is that it? That’s you’re problem with him? That he thought I was married to a guy?” In the grand scheme of things that didn’t seem so bad to Nicole.

“He also said that he didn’t think you being married to a dude would make sense because you ‘struck’ him as a lesbian,” Wynonna said as if that was some sort of smoking gun.

“Wynonna, I’m still not seeing a huge problem here,” Nicole said.

“That’s offensive though right?”

“Not really,” Nicole said with a shrug. “He made a problematic heteronormative assumption that he then apologized for. He seems at least self-aware enough to see what he thought was a problem.”

“But what about the assuming you’re gay thing?”

Nicole shrugged again, “He has decent gaydar. What an asshole,” she said sarcastically then added, “I know how I read to people. Didn’t you assume I was gay when you met me?”

Wynonna shook her head and said, “Of course not. You were wearing earrings.”

Nicole sighed and rolled her eyes. “That actually is a little bit offensive,” she pinched the bridge of her nose and said, “Look he’s qualified, and he wants to work in Purgatory. Do you have any idea how rare it is to find both those qualities in a deputy? Unless you give me a really good reason, I’m hiring him Wynonna.”

Wynonna opened and closed her mouth several times and shrugged. “I just don’t like him. Call it gut instinct.”

“Sorry, girl, but I can’t rely on your gut here,” Nicole said as she patted Wynonna’s arm. “I’m going to bed. Good night.”

“Yeah, good night,” Wynonna said as Nicole walked out of the kitchen. 

Nicole sighed as she climbed the stairs to her bedroom. Wynonna being uncharacteristically interested in who Nicole was hiring made Nicole wonder what the heck was actually going on. Sam seemed polite and friendly. Nothing he had said or done had sent up any red flags for Nicole. She also couldn’t deny, even though he certainly wasn’t her type, that he was handsome. She wondered if therein really lay Wynonna’s problem with him.

Nicole did actually trust Wynonna’s gut instincts…most of the time, but in this case, Nicole had the sneaking suspicion that the reason Wynonna didn’t want her to hire Sam wasn’t that Wynonna didn’t like him but rather because she did. She sure hoped that wouldn’t wind up blowing up in everyone’s face.

***  
“Can’t believe it,” Wynonna said as she leaned on the pool table, “After all these years we finally found one.”

“It wasn’t a Shih Tzu-scorpion hybrid,” Jeremy said as he took a shot. It bounced out of the pocket without going in. He sighed and straightened up.

“Don’t rain on my parade, Chetri. It looked like a dog with a scorpion tail. It was a Shih Tzu-scorpion hybrid.”

“It was a minor demon from the Goetia,” he replied.

“Potato, potahto,” Wynonna said as she leaned down and lined up her shot, “Seven ball corner pocket.” She sank it. She didn’t really care what the demon was or where it was from, but it was kind of fun killing shit again. Heck, she even managed to talk Jeremy into a celebratory round of pool at Shorty’s. It almost felt like old times, except there was club soda and lime in the glass balanced on the edge of the table instead of whiskey.

“Is that the cute new deputy?” Jeremy asked as the door to Shorty’s swung open. 

Wynonna glanced up, and sure enough, Officer Donovan walked in. He was cute…hell he was hot. He filled out his uniform in all the right ways. It had been a while since Wynonna thought about a guy like that and it made her uneasy. Most of her relationships had run on booze and lust. She couldn’t afford that with Alice around.

“I’m going to tell Robin, you think the new deputy is cute,” Wynonna said chidingly to Jeremy.

“Robin has my heart, but I still have eyes,” Jeremy said, then he turned his attention to the deputy and called with a wave, “Hi, Sam.” Wynonna hit his arm and glared at him. Jeremy looked confused.

“Don’t call him over here,” Wynonna said sourly.

“Why not?” Jeremy asked, and then a knowing smile spread over his face, “You like him, don’t you?”

“I do not,” Wynonna said firmly.

“Hey, Sam,” Jeremy called, “Come and join us.”

“I hate you,” Wynonna muttered to Jeremy as Sam walked across the room towards them.

“Hello, nice to see you again, Jeremy,” Sam said, then turned his gaze towards Wynonna and smiled, “Wynonna.”

“What brings you to Shorty’s?” Jeremy asked.

“In your uniform,” Wynonna added.

“Sheriff Haught suggested I stop by during happy hour, and get to know some of the locals,” Sam explained.

“Well Wynonna, here, is as local as they come,” Jeremy said with a smirk, “You could always get to know her.”

Sam smiled again at Wynonna. “I have a feeling getting to know Wynonna isn’t as easy as it sounds. Bet it’s worth it though.”

Wynonna didn’t reply, but she let a small smile slip. He was cute and charming, with a nice smile and even nicer ass-she was in trouble.

“Well look at the time,” Jeremy said making a big deal of looking at his watch, “I have to meet Robin…That’s my boyfriend. You should finish the game with Wynonna,” He said as he handed Sam the pool stick. Wynonna grabbed at his arm to keep him from leaving, but he slipped her grasp and gave her a wink. “You two have fun,” he said as he scurried towards the door.

“He seems very nice, but he is a bit of an odd duck, right?” Sam asked after Jeremy left.

“You don’t know the half of it,” Wynonna replied.

“Can I buy you a drink?” Sam asked.

“I don’t drink,” Wynonna said resolutely.

“That sounds like a good way to get dehydrated, and there appears to be liquid in that glass,” Sam said with a smirk as he pointed at Wynonna’s glass on the pool table.

“I don’t drink booze,” Wynonna clarified.

“Me either,” Sam said then pointed at the glass again, “Club soda with a twist?” Wynonna nodded, and Sam said as he leaned the pool cue against the table, “Coming right up.” He walked to the bar and quickly returned with two drinks. He handed one to Wynonna.

“Why don’t you drink?” She asked suspiciously.

“You any good?” He nodded at the pool table as he picked up the cue Jeremy had handed him earlier. 

Wynonna ran her hand up and down the cue in her own hand suggestively. “I know my way around a stick,” she replied.

“I bet you do,” he said, “Make you a deal, for every shot you make you get to ask me a question. Every shot I make, I get to ask you one.”

Wynonna sighed. She knew she shouldn’t do it. She should leave now, drive home and go read Alice a story. But she wanted to say yes. She wanted to more than she had wanted anything for herself in quite a while. “Deal,” she said.

“Ladies first. You break,” he said as he nodded at the table.

Wynonna racked the balls and lined up her shot. She broke, and several balls rolled into pockets. “Ok,” she said, “Why don’t you drink?”

“My mother was a Quaker,” he said, “Never had liquor around growing up. Never developed a taste for it when I got older.”

“So, you grew up without electricity and shit?” Wynonna asked.

Sam laughed, “That’s the Amish.”

“Right, I was just testing you,” Wynonna said defensively. She lined up her next shot. “Two, side pocket,” she said and took the shot. The ball hit the corner of the pocket and bounced out. “Shit,” she muttered.

Sam smiled and bent over to take his turn. He did have a really nice ass. “Nine, side pocket,” he said.

“You can’t make that,” Wynonna said dismissively as he took the shot. The ball bounced off the rail and into the pocket. Wynonna opened and closed her mouth several times as Sam stood up and grinned. “Am I being hustled?” she asked.

“I think it’s my turn to ask a question,” he said with a wry smile. “Why don’t you drink?” he asked in a more serious tone.

She hesitated for a moment before answering. “Daddy was a drunk, and there was always booze around growing up. I developed too much of a taste for it.” 

She watched his face for a reaction, but he remained neutral and just said, “Fair enough,” and bent over and lined up his next shot, which of course he sunk. “Alice’s father still in the picture?”

“Nope,” Wynonna said simply. Of course, the answer was a bit more complicated than that, but she could hardly explain that Doc Holliday was still alive, had knocked her up, gotten himself turned into a vampire and was currently on a quest to cure himself.

Sam smiled and said, “Good to know.” 

He did eventually scratch, and Wynonna learned that he was from Vancouver and of course he had been on the billiard team in college. He was from a long line of cops on his father’s side, and that’s all he wanted to be growing up. 

Wynonna had revealed during the game that she had kicked around Greece for nearly three years. That she had come home after Curtis’s death (she conveniently left out all details about being the Earp Heir) and that she didn’t like peas.

“Eight ball, corner pocket,” Sam said lining up the shot, of course, he sank it. He stood up and grinned, “I believe that’s the game.”

“Whatever, Fast Eddie,” Wynonna said tartly.

“I get one last question,” he said.

“Shoot,” Wynonna said. Hustled she may have been, but she wouldn’t welch on a deal.

“Will you have dinner with me Friday?” he asked.

Wynonna blinked several times. Playing pool and kind of flirting was one thing, but she couldn’t go out on a date with Sam…could she?

“No,” she replied, “Thanks for the game and drink.” She started towards the door. 

He grabbed her arm. “Wait, why not?”

Wynonna sighed and turned back to him. He released her arm. “That’s another question. The deal was for a question a shot. You asked your last question, and I’m going home to my kid,” she said. She walked towards the door. She could feel him follow her, but she didn’t turn back around until she was out of Shorty’s and near her truck.

“Come on, Wynonna. Just tell me why not? I like you, I think you might like me. I’m just asking for dinner,” Sam said from behind her. She rested her forehead against the side window of her truck for a moment before she took a deep breath and turned around.

“Look, you seem nice Sam and…I’m a MILF with a drinking problem. You don’t want any part of this,” she replied.

“From where I’m standing you’re a smart, funny woman, who’s seems like an awesome mom to an adorable kid. I don’t care if you drank too much. I don’t even really care if you lie to me about what you do for a living,” he said, “I am not stupid enough to think you fix gas leaks, for the record. I like you Wynonna. I would like to get to know you better. Please have dinner with me?”  
Wynonna stared at him. He had a slight hopeful smile that was beyond charming. Her head told her to repeat her refusal, but the rest of her body answered, “Okay.”

“Okay?” he said surprised.

“Yeah okay, Friday. There’s really only one decent restaurant in Purgatory, you know.”

“I know it,” he replied, “Do you want me to pick you up?”

“No, no, I’ll meet you there,” Wynonna told him. The last thing she wanted was Waverly and Nicole hovering over her when she got picked up for a date. God, she had a kid, and she felt way too old to be picked up for a date anyway. 

“Okay, meet you around seven?”

“Seven.”

***  
Waverly was reading in front of the fireplace when Wynonna walked into the homestead. “You’re home late,” she said. 

“Alice in bed?” Wynonna asked as she sat down next to her baby sister.

“Yeah, Nicole too. I thought you and Jeremy were only going to play one game of pool.”

Wynonna stretched her neck side to side and said, “Jeremy ditched me.”

“So, what did you do?” Waverly asked hesitantly. 

Wynonna caught the tone in Waverly’s voice. There was fear and suspicion there. “I wasn’t drinking,” Wynonna said sharply, “Want to smell my breath,” she added defensively.

“Of course not, I didn’t mean it like that,” Waverly said.

“Yes, you did,” Wynonna replied.

“Okay…maybe I did, but can you blame me? It’s the first time in months you’ve been home later than you said you would,” Waverly explained.

Wynonna looked at her sister and sighed. Waverly had loved her and been there for her during everything, including the drinking. No, she couldn’t blame Waverly at all. She patted her sister’s leg and shook her head. “Sorry, I’m just in a mood.”

“Why? I thought the case went well.”

“It did…” Wynonna’s voice trailed off.

“So?”

“You and Nicole free on Friday?” Wynonna asked suddenly.

“I think so,” Waverly replied obviously taken off guard by the apparent non sequitur, “Why?”

“It’s cool if you’re not,” Wynonna was half hoping that Waverly would say she was busy and Wynonna and would have an excuse to cancel on Sam.

“No, I’m pretty sure we’re free. Why?” Waverly but repeated.

“Can you watch Alice? I might be…kind of…sort of…having dinner with someone,” Wynonna couldn’t bring herself to call it a date. That would make it too real.

“You have a date?” Waverly exclaimed.

“No,” Wynonna said firmly, “It is just two adults sharing a meal.”

“Who is it?”

“Sam,” Wynonna admitted.

“New deputy Sam?” Waverly asked then added, “He has a cute butt.”

“I’m aware,” Wynonna said dryly.

“Is that who you were with tonight?” Waverly asked, and Wynonna nodded. “Then why are you in a bad mood?”

It was hard for Wynonna to explain her mixed feelings for Sam. Playing pool and flirting with him had almost made her feel like her old self again…and that scared her. Her old self drank, her old self slept around, and her old self would have been a supremely shitty mom to Alice. But there was also something else…Doc. 

Wynonna and Doc had never really defined completely what they were to each other. Nor had they ever been entirely faithful to one another, but no matter how far they strayed they always seemed to fall back into each other’s orbits. Being with Doc had always felt like gravity to Wynonna. Some invisible, but all too real inescapable force. She might jump up in the air, but she would always return to the ground. Without Doc around part of her felt untethered; like she might just float away. There was also guilt in every smile she gave to Sam because, without Doc around, the idea of being with another guy felt more disloyal because it could turn into something real.

“Sometimes, Alice makes a face, and she looks so much like Doc, it hurts, Baby Girl,” Wynonna said, “I still miss him.”

Waverly reached out and took Wynonna’s hand and squeezed it. “He left, not you,” Waverly said.

“I know,” Wynonna said though she sounded less than sure.

“You get to have a life, Wynonna. You get to be happy. Wynonna Earp pines for no man,” Waverly said with a smile.

“Damn right, Baby Girl,” Wynonna said with a grin.

“And Sam seems nice.”

“He does.”

“And he’s not a revenant, or a psychopath, or…”

“A hundred and thirty-year-old cowboy,” Wynonna added.

“And he has a cute butt.”

“He has a really cute butt,” Wynonna said with a smile at Waverly.


	8. Chapter 8

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Wynonna and Sam go on their first date. Wynonna perhaps reveals more than she wanted to about herself, in more ways than one.

Wynonna walked up to the door of the restaurant and turned away from it for the third time in a row. She couldn’t believe she was doing this. It had been a long time since she had been out on a date. Hell, Wynonna Earp didn’t do much what would be considered dating anyway. Most times she met a guy, got drunk and wound up in bed with them. Occasionally the details changed, but that was the general story.

She took a deep breath and gripped the door handle and pulled it open. There was no going back now.

She found Sam sitting at one of the booths. He stood as she walked over to him and smiled.

“You look very pretty tonight,” he said.

“Thanks,” Wynonna said as she sat down across from him. “You look nice too.” He was wearing a crisp button-down shirt tucked into a pair of dark blue jeans.

He sat back down and said, “I won’t lie I was a little worried you’d stand me up.”

“I won’t lie, I thought about it. I don’t really do this,” she said as she motioned between Sam and herself.

“Eat dinner?”

“Date,” she replied.

“Look, like I said, I like you Wynonna, I just want to get to know you better. No pressure,” he said with a smile.

“Ok,” she said, although she didn’t feel completely relieved. 

They looked over the menu, and the waitress took their order. They made some small talk and Sam told her about a time when he was a kid, his parents let him order off the adult menu, and he ordered calamari and was horrified to discover it was squid when they brought it out.

“What was it like growing up as an Earp around here? Must be pretty cool to be the how-ever-many-great granddaughter of a gunslinger,” he asked.

“It blew,” Wynonna said dryly.

“You’re telling me other kids didn’t think that was pretty cool when you were growing up?” he said skeptically.

“Everyone around here knows the Earps are crazy. And I’m the craziest one of all,” Wynonna said with a sarcastic smile.

“I doubt that.”

“Oh, I have the psych ward admits to prove it,” Wynonna said. She honestly didn’t know why she had let that one slip. Perhaps part of her wanted to screw up the date. It would make life so much simpler.

Sam raised an eyebrow, “You’re joking right?”

Wynonna shook her head and said more seriously, “It was when I was a kid.”

Sam shifted uncomfortably in his seat. “Have anything to do with your father?”

Wynonna gave a slight smirk. “So you have heard some of the town gossip?”

“No,” he explained, “I saw a plaque for officers killed in the line of duty at the station with the name, Ward Earp, on it. It had his date of birth and death. I did some math, figured it might be your father?”

“Yeah, Daddy was the sheriff before Nicole and Nedley,” she said softly.

“You must have been what? Eleven or twelve when he died?”

“Twelve.”

“Your father being killed violently, I can see how that might fuck-pardon my French-a kid up,” he said.

Wynonna gave a sardonic laugh. “You don’t know the half of it,” she paused before continuing, “By then Mama was…gone, and it was just us, me, Waves and Willa and Daddy….”

“You have another sister?” he asked.

“Did…That night men broke in to the homestead. They took Willa, and they dragged Daddy outside to kill him…” her voice trailed off, and she looked down at the table. She had no idea why she was telling him any of this. “I picked up his gun to try and save him…I was a shitty shot at twelve, I’m only slightly better now,” she said with a grim laugh.

“You shot him?”

“Right in the back. Would have been better off if I had aimed at him, then I might have hit one of the guys holding him instead.”

“Jesus Christ.” Sam had a blank look on his face that Wynonna couldn’t quite read.

“I don’t think he had anything to do with it…or if he did, he and I have to have a chat one of these days,” Wynonna said dryly, “But anyway after Daddy died, it was in and out of the psych ward and then juvie a few times.”

The waitress picked that moment to come back with their food. She placed it down in front of Sam and Wynonna and told them to “Enjoy” before disappearing. They sat in silence for a few moments before Wynonna said, “Sorry, I usually leave the father murdering story until after dessert. If you want to run for the hills now, I got the check.”

“What happened to your sister?”

“Dead,” she replied. She wasn’t going to tell him anything about Willa coming back and Wynonna having to shoot her. She had already said way too much.

“Did they catch the guys?”

“Eventually they got what they deserved,” she said quietly.

“Wow,” was all he said with a shake of his head.

“Seriously, I got the check if you want to book,” Wynonna repeated.

“Why would I want to do that?” he asked with a confused shake of his head.

“I just told you I killed my own father,” she said with raised eyebrows.

“You told me, how at twelve, you were brave enough to pick up a gun to try and save your father’s life.”

“But I killed him,” Wynonna repeated.

“But they were going to kill him anyway…” his voice trailed off. “Wynonna, I’m sorry that happened to you, but if you told me that to scare me off. It didn’t work.” Then he added with a smile, “You just seem more impressive to me now.”

“You’re a weirdo,” Wynonna said, returning his smile.

“Yep,” he said.

***  
Wynonna managed not to reveal any more childhood traumas during dinner. They actually managed to have a friendly conversation, and Wynonna limited her stories to amusing ones about Waverly and Alice.

After they were done eating, Sam asked her to take a walk with him, and she agreed. It was starting to get colder, but Wynonna didn’t really mind the fresh night air.

“I know I said before that I didn’t mind you lying to me about what you do, but I kind of do mind,” Sam said as they walked along the street, “What do you do for the PPD? I know that you don’t fix gas leaks.”

“Purgatory is a town full of secrets and lies,” Wynonna said, “You hang around long enough, you’ll learn most of them…but if you don’t stay long enough to find out on your own then it’s better not to know them.”

“That’s some vague bullshit,” he said, but he smiled.

“Yes, it is, but it’s true,” Wynonna said, “Look, if it makes you feel better, we didn’t tell Nicole anything when she first got here either.”

Sam shrugged, “That actually does make me feel better.”

“Why Purgatory anyway? There have to be better places to work.”

“I liked the idea of a small town. A place to get my feet wet as a cop, where I could really get to know the people living there...I’m liking the people pretty well so far,” he said with that damn charming smile. “Why do you stay if it has such bad memories for you?” he asked more seriously.

It was a good question. With the curse ended Wynonna really did have the option of going just about anywhere, but she couldn’t imagine living any other place but Purgatory. Sure, there were more than its fair share of bad memories, but there were good ones too. “It’s home. For better or for worse, it’s home,” she explained, “I feel like I’m staked to this land. It’s in my blood, and my blood is in it.”

“Interesting way to see things,” he said.

They wandered for a while. They chatted and flirted, and for a little bit, Wynonna felt like an average woman on an average date. “I should head back to my truck,” she said.

“My apartment’s just up the street,” Sam said. Wynonna raised an eyebrow. “I just mean it’s cold, we could have a cup of coffee to warm up before I walk you back to your truck,” he added, obviously embarrassed at what he had implied with his first statement.

Wynonna resisted the urge to make a double entendre and embarrass him further. “Okay,” she said.

“Okay?” he sounded both surprised and happy at her agreement.

She followed Sam to his apartment. He opened the door and offered to take her jacket. She agreed, and he hung it on a rack by the door after hanging up his own. He showed her to the living room and told her to make herself at home while he made some coffee. 

The apartment was surprisingly clean for somewhere a single guy lived. There was no clutter, and everything seemed to have its place. Wynonna certainly had never kept anywhere she had lived that neat, especially when she lived alone.

She sat down on the couch and Sam soon returned with the coffee.

“Black, right?” he said as he handed her a cup.

“Yeah,” she said as she took a sip. It was good coffee.

He sat down next to her and smiled. “Do you have to be home by a certain time?”

“Why?” she said as she raised an eyebrow.

“Just curious,” he said, “I didn’t know if you had a babysitter or something.”

“Waves and Nicole are watching Alice,” she told him.

“You guys seem to have this whole, it takes a village thing going on. Sherriff Haught talks about Alice all the time. It’s nice.”

“Yeah well, they both love Alice and Alice loves them, so it works. Heck, when she first came home, Alice liked them more than me…not that I can blame her. I like them more than I like me most days,” Wynonna said.

“Came home?” he asked.

Another thing Wynonna shouldn’t have let slip, though she had half expected Sam to already know that Alice had only been living with her for a few months. Between working with Nicole and just gossip around town, it was no secret that Alice Earp had not lived her entire life in Purgatory.

“Alice lived with my aunt until a few months ago,” Wynonna explained.

“Because of…” his voice trailed off.

“No, not because I’m a drunk,” she said calmly. She really couldn’t blame him for thinking that, it had been one of the first things she had told him about herself. “The fixing gas leaks used to be more dangerous and some people really didn’t want me to fix the gas leaks, and they would have used Alice against me, so I sent her to live with my aunt.”

“It’s safer to fix gas leaks in Purgatory now?” he asked.

“It is.”

“Does anyone actually buy the ‘gas leak’ thing?”

“You’d be surprised what people believe when they want to believe it,” Wynonna said.

“I guess I can kind of buy that.”

They fell into a surprisingly comfortable silence. Their hands slipped closer to each other and then their fingers intertwined. Sam’s eyes kept flicking down to stare at Wynonna’s mouth, and she knew he wanted to kiss her. Surprisingly she wanted him to. She set her coffee cup on the table in front of them, and he did the same.

He gently reached out and pushed a stray strand of her hair behind her ear. “Would it be okay…could I…” 

“Oh, just shut up and kiss me already,” Wynonna said with a smile and wink.

“Yes, Ma’am,” he said as he leaned in and their lips met.

***  
Wynonna awoke with a start. For a moment she didn’t know where she was or how she got there. The darkened room was utterly unfamiliar. She glanced over and found Sam sleeping next to her and the memories of what had happened returned.

So much for being an ordinary woman who didn’t bang the guy on the first date. But Sam turned out to be a surprisingly good kisser…he was surprisingly good at other things as well. Wynonna didn’t regret it. Even if she never saw him again, she had enjoyed herself.

She caught sight of the time on the alarm clock on the night table. “Shit, shit, shit,” she mumbled as she climbed over Sam’s sleeping form to get out of the bed. He let out a groan as she accidentally kneed him in the process.

“What’s wrong?” he asked sleepily.

Wynonna frantically began searching for her clothes that were scattered all over the floor. “We fell asleep,” she hissed.

“I thought you said you didn’t have to be home by a certain time.”

“But I do have to go home,” she said as she began pulling on her clothes, “Waverly is going to kill me.”

“It’s late why don’t you stay here. You can just call her first thing and let her know you’re okay,” he said holding his hand out for her to return to bed.

Wynonna finally located her phone in her pants pocket and checked the messages. There was only one from Waverly from several hours earlier telling Wynonna that Alice was fine, and Waverly was going to bed, and she hoped Wynonna was having a good time. Wynonna let out a sigh of relief. 

“I’ve got to go home.” She walked over to the bed and kissed him, “I had a good time, thank you.”

“I should walk you to your truck.”

“I’m fine. No point in us both getting cold.”

“Are you sure? I should really walk you.”

“I can take care of myself.”

“Can I call you?” he asked.

“Sure,” she said as she gathered up the rest of her things, “Let me know if you ever find my bra,” she said with a wink. It was the one item she had been unable to locate.  
“I’ll keep my eyes peeled for it,” he said with a grin.

“Thanks,” Wynonna said as she left the room. She figured she’d never hear from Officer Donovan again, but it had been nice to feel like a woman and not just Alice’s mom for one evening.

***  
Wynonna quietly snuck into the house, careful not to wake anyone. She felt like a teenager again. She crept up the stairs to Alice’s room. She was going to check and make sure Alice was alright and go to bed herself, but as she opened the door, she found Alice’s bed was empty. Though someone had apparently been sleeping in it at some point.

A flutter of panic hit Wynonna. She quickly rushed down the hall and found the door to Waverly and Nicole’s room partially open. Wynonna pushed it open the rest of the way and found Waverly and Alice asleep. Alice was taking up most of the bed, with her arms and legs spread like a starfish. Waverly was cuddled on the edge with four blankets piled on top of her. Wynonna let out a sigh of relief, though she did wonder where Nicole might be.

She walked back down the hall to her own bedroom. She opened the door and found Nicole sound asleep on her bed on top of the covers.

Wynonna leaned over the bed and poked the taller woman. “Nicole,” she said and got no response she then poked her again and said more loudly, “Nicole!”

Nicole jerked awake. “Sorry, Baby, I’m awake,” she glanced around then her eyes fell on Wynonna, “Oh it’s you.”

“Yeah funny that I’m in my own room. What the hell are you doing on my bed, Haught?”

Nicole rubbed her face with her hands. “Alice had a bad dream, so Waverly let her sleep with us, but after being kicked in the kidneys about a dozen times I got up. Why does such a small person take up so much space in a bed?”

“When I figure it out I’ll let you know,” Wynonna said and then added, “So you decided to sleep in my room?”

“No, first I went to Alice’s room, but my feet hang off her bed. Then I was going downstairs to sleep on the couch, but your door was open, and I was just so tired that I figured it wouldn’t be a big deal to lay down for a few minutes,” Nicole explained, “Sorry.”

“It’s okay,” Wynonna said with a sigh.

“What time is it anyway?”

“Late,” Wynonna said.

“So, I guess your date with Sam went well,” Nicole said in that Haught-to-trot tone that Wynonna hated.

Wynonna sat at the edge of the bed and toed off her boots. “It was fine…good even,” she said and then glanced back over her shoulder at Nicole, “Why aren’t you giving me shit about dating one of your deputies? Aren’t you afraid I’m going to run him off?”

Nicole sighed and said, “Look when you were a total hot mess, I probably would have warned Sam off, but now you’re only a lukewarm mess, and you deserve to be happy. And he seems like a nice guy. If he runs off, he didn’t deserve you or to work for the PPD.”

“Thanks,” Wynonna said sincerely.

“No problem,” Nicole said, “I’ll go down to the couch now.”

“Don’t rush,” Wynonna said as she stood up and grabbed clothes to sleep in, “I’m going to take a quick shower and change.”

When Wynonna came back from her shower, Nicole was once again fast asleep. Wynonna poked her again and said, “Move over.”

“I’m getting up,” Nicole mumbled.

“Don’t bother, just move over,” Wynonna repeated as she pulled the covers back and slipped underneath them.

“You’re sure?” Nicole mumbled again as she scooted towards the other edge of the bed.

Wynonna moved a pillow between them, “No trying to cuddle with me, Haught-pants.”

***  
Wynonna walked into the kitchen in the morning to find Waverly and Alice already up. They were sitting at the table eating breakfast. Wynonna kissed Alice’s head, and the little girl said, “Hi, Mama.”

“Good morning, kiddo.”

“What time did you get home?” Waverly asked.

“Late,” Wynonna replied.

“I guess it went well then?” Waverly said with a wink.

“Don’t start with me, Baby Girl,” Wynonna said as she poured herself some coffee and sat down at the table, but she did smile.

“Did you see Nicole this morning?” Waverly asked, “She wasn’t in bed when I got up, and she wasn’t down here. I figured she ran into town for something, but she usually leaves a note.”

“She’s still asleep,” Wynonna said as she sipped her coffee.

Waverly looked confused, “Where? She’s not in our room, and she’s not on the couch?”

“She slept with me,” Wynonna said. Waverly raised both eyebrows, “Ew, not like that. I found her passed out on my bed when I got home, and I left her there.”

“What was she doing in your room?”

Wynonna leaned over and began tickling Alice, “Apparently someone takes up a lot of space in the bed.” Alice let out peals of laughter.

Nicole picked that moment to shuffle into the kitchen.

“Good morning, sweetie,” Waverly said.

Nicole just grunted and said, “Coffee, I need coffee.” She looked exhausted.

“Why are you such a ray of sunshine this morning?” Wynonna asked.

“You snore like a bear, Wynonna,” she said as she sat down at the table, “Like a bear with sleep apnea.”

“At least I didn’t try and spoon you,” Wynonna said wryly.

“I did not,” Nicole said indignantly. She turned to Waverly who looked quite bemused and said, “I swear I didn’t.”

“It’s okay, sweetie,” Waverly said as she threaded her fingers through Nicole’s, “I’m sure you thought it was me.”

“I’m always thinking about you,” Nicole replied as she kissed the back of Waverly’s hand.

“Can you two not be this gross before I’ve finished my first cup of coffee?” Wynonna said.

There was a loud knock on the front door. All three women looked at each other.

“Are Jeremy and Robin coming for breakfast?” Nicole asked.

“No…” Waverly said.

“Can I answer it?” Alice asked.

All three adults said simultaneously, “No.”

“Bet it’s Mormons,” Wynonna said as she got up and started to walk to the living room, “I’ll have you guys come and make-out in front of them if I can’t scare them off.” She walked to the front door and prepared to say something outrageous to two young men in white shirts and black ties, but only one man was standing there, and he was wearing a denim jacket over a t-shirt with the Canucks logo on it. “Sam?” Wynonna said.

“Um…Hi,” he stammered, “I didn’t know if I should come over, but I brought you these,” he pulled out a bouquet of flowers and held them out for Wynonna. She reached out and took them. They were simple gerbera daisies, but they were pretty. “Can I come in?” he asked.

“Um…yeah…sure,” Wynonna said as she stepped back to allow him to enter. She ran her hand through her hair quickly. She really wished she wasn’t wearing a t-shirt with a hole in the shoulder, no makeup, with bedhead. “What are you doing here?” she asked as she closed the door behind him.

“Well, you left so quickly last night I didn’t get a chance to tell you how good a time I had,” he said.

“I think the ‘oh-my-gods,’ made that pretty clear,” Wynonna said with a suggestive smile.

“Plus,” he said as he held up a small gift bag, “I found your bra,” he said the last word in a whisper.

“Thank you,” Wynonna said in a mocking whisper as she took the gift bag.

“Wynonna, do you need us to make-out in front of them or what?” Waverly said as she walked into the room. She jumped when she saw Sam. “Oh hi, Sam…That must have sounded super weird out of context…”

“Good morning, Mrs.…Waverly,” Sam said.

“We thought you were Mormons,” Waverly explained.

“I was raised Quaker,” he said glancing at Wynonna, obviously confused.

“No, Nicole and I were going to make out in front of you to get you to go away if you were a Mormon,” Waverly said as if that explained everything. Wynonna rolled her eyes.

“Um…but I’m not a Mormon…”

Waverly started to open her mouth again, but Wynonna cut her off, “Give it up Baby Girl.”

“Right, never mind,” Waverly said with a wave of her hand. “Those are pretty flowers,” she said as she noticed the bouquet that Wynonna was holding, “I’m going to put those in some water and let you two talk.” She took the bouquet from Wynonna.

“Take this too, please,” Wynonna said as she handed Waverly the gift bag.

“Oh, what’s this?” Waverly asked.

“My bra,” Wynonna replied.

“Ok, so it did go well last night,” Waverly said with a nod. She gave Wynonna a thumbs up as she retreated into the kitchen. Wynonna could hear her telling Nicole and Alice not to come into the living room in hushed tones.

Wynonna sighed and smiled at Sam. “Sorry about that.”

“It’s okay,” he replied, “Like I said, I think it’s nice that you guys live together like you do.”

“You don’t want to run for the hills yet?” she asked.

He stepped towards her. “No,” he said, “I don’t want to run for the hills. I came here because I like you Wynonna and I didn’t want you to get the wrong idea about last night. I don’t usually do that on a first date…”

“Have coffee?” she said jokingly.

“Sleep with someone,” he clarified.

“Wish I could say it was my first rodeo…you don’t owe me anything, Sam. I had fun too, and I’m a big girl,” Wynonna told him.

“I am very aware of that,” he said with a smirk, “But I like you Wynonna. I didn’t want last night to be a one-time thing.”

“I think, technically, it was a four-time thing, anyway,” Wynonna stepped closer to him and stared at his mouth, “But I don’t want it to be a one-time thing either.

“No?” he asked.

“No,” she said as she leaned up and kissed him. The kiss broke, and Wynonna said with a wink, “So how do you like your eggs in the morning?”

“Unfertilized,” he said with a smile.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks as always for reading and the comments. I'm not sure that going forward I'm going to be updating as frequently as I have been thus far. I'm currently going back to school (I'm getting a second degree in my field) and I just started a fairly writing heavy class this term, so updates might be a little slower, but fear not they will be coming. As I said in my last note, this story often feels less like I'm writing it and more like it's escaping my head, so it's just a matter of finding the time to let it escape. Also, angst will be returning possibly in the form of everyone favorite blue-eyed gunslinger, so I hope you stick around.


	9. Chapter 9

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A familiar face returns and Wynonna must decide what that means for her and Alice

Wynonna hummed along with the radio as she folded Alice’s clothes. Nicole was at the station, Waverly was at the historical society, and Alice was at school. It was nice to have the house to herself for the afternoon even if she was spending it trying to figure out how none of Alice’s socks matched.

She probably would have heard the car driving up to the house if she hadn’t had music playing. The knock on the door startled her. The list of people who would be at the Earp homestead in the middle of the day was short; the number who would bother to knock before coming in was even shorter. It must be Sam.

They had met either at the homestead or his apartment a couple times on his lunch break. They usually planned it, but perhaps he decided to surprise her? They had officially been together for a few months. Wynonna was having a good time. He was smart, reasonably funny….and he wanted her. It was nice to feel wanted. And the sex was pretty good.

Wynonna made her way down the stairs towards the front door. “Sam if you think I’m up for an afternoon quickie…you are absolutely right,” she said as she started to pull open the door, “But I only have…” The sentence died on her lips. It was not Sam standing on the other side of the door.

The sun was shining behind the figure putting him in silhouette, but it was a silhouette she would never forget as long as she lived.

“Wynonna…”

It had been a long time since she had heard her name said in that particular way. Wynonna would never admit to anyone, especially him, how much she loved when he said her name like that. It was like velvet being slipped around her. It made her feel warm and safe…and loved.

“Doc,” she whispered. Her head spun. She had resigned herself to the fact that she would never see him again. To have him standing on her porch unleashed a torrent of emotions. She finally pulled herself together enough to say, “How…What are you doing here?”

He shifted his weight and sun now fell on his face, so she could see him clearly. It was Doc. Nothing had really changed in him. Same stupid hat, same blue eyes, same mustache.

“I have done as I said I would do. I have returned, Wynonna,” he said with a slight hopeful smile, “May I come in? I think we have much to talk about.”

Wynonna swallowed down the lump forming in her throat. “Do you need an invitation?”

“If I am not to be rude.”

“Be rude,” she said firmly and stepped back slightly to allow him room to enter.

Doc nodded and gave a slight understanding smile. He removed his hat as if it was less rude to enter a home uninvited bareheaded. Wynonna almost laughed at the absurdity of it all. He stepped over the threshold and held his arms slightly out to the side. “Satisfied?” he asked.

Wynonna blinked back tears. “How?”

Doc replaced his hat on his head. “The details are unimportant right now, I think. Sufficed to say I am cured of my affliction, and I have returned to you…and Alice.”

“So you’re what?” she asked.

He stepped closer to her and reached out and took her hand and pressed it to his chest. “I am a man, Wynonna. Feel my heartbeat.”

Wynonna closed her eyes. She could feel his heartbeat beneath her hand. She could feel the warmth of his hand holding hers. She remembered him pressing her hand against his chest similarly so many years ago. The memories of that moment spilled into so many other touches shared between them. She opened her eyes and pulled her hand back. It was too much, much too much. 

She ignored the hurt she saw in his eyes as she pulled away. She turned and started walking into the kitchen. She could feel him follow her. “So, you’re just a normal guy now?”

“I’m not sure I could ever be called ‘normal,’ but I am just a man…a mortal man,” he explained.

She stopped and turned back and faced him. “And what are you doing here?”

He looked confused. “I told you that I would return to you, and I have.”

“That was almost a year ago, Doc.”

“If you think the things I had to do were easy then you are mistaken Wynonna.”

“I don’t know what the hell you had to do because I haven’t heard from you. Did they not have phones wherever you were? Internet? Fucking carrier pigeons? You could have been dead for all I knew,” she said sharply.

“I didn’t feel I should contact you until I was myself again,” he said.

Wynonna shook her head. “I need coffee,” she muttered and went over to the coffee machine to make some. Hell, she needed something much stronger than coffee, but coffee would have to do. Mostly she wanted something to do with her hands that didn’t involve either jumping Doc’s bones or punching him in the face, in all honesty, she didn’t know which she wanted to do more. “You want coffee?” she asked.

“I wouldn’t say no to a bit of whiskey,” he said.

Wynonna stopped what she was doing and turned back to him. “I don’t keep booze in the house anymore.”

Doc raised his eyebrows. “Then things have certainly changed in the time I have been gone.”

“Yeah well, can’t be half in the bag at three in the afternoon with a kid around,” Wynonna said coldly.

“How is Alice?” he asked.

“She’s perfect,” Wynonna replied.

“May I see her?” he asked.

“She’s at school,” she said, then added as she looked at the clock, “Shit, I have to pick her up.”

“Perhaps we could go together,” he said hopefully.

“No fucking way,” Wynonna said, “We can’t just spring this on her.”

“I am her father, Wynonna,” Doc said. The hurt had returned to his eyes, but Wynonna didn’t really care. Alice was more important than Doc’s feelings. There was no way she was going to surprise Alice with her long-lost father.

“And I’m her mother, and I’m the one who’s been here,” she said and then pointed at his chest, “You have to go…You have to be gone by the time I get back.”

“Wynonna, we need to discuss this.”

“Nope, I need to pick Alice up. I can’t do this, right now,” she said as she pulled her jacket off of the back of one of the kitchen chairs.

“Do what?”

“This…whatever this is,” she motioned between the two of them, “I can’t do it right now.”

“Well when will we be doing it?” he asked clearly exasperated.

“I’ll let you know,” she said as she walked out of the kitchen, “Be gone by the time I get back,” she called over her shoulder.

***  
Nicole was just finishing paperwork as the blur named Alice ran into her office, around her desk and jumped on her lap.

“Aunt Nicole,” the little girl cried, “I got a gold sticker today at school.”

“Uh…That’s great, sweetie…What are you doing here?” Nicole asked. She was confused. Wynonna was picking Alice up as far as she knew and there was no reason for them to be at the station.

“I need you to watch Alice for a few.”

Nicole looked up to find Wynonna standing in her office doorway. She was holding Alice’s backpack in one hand which she dropped by the door. She had a look on her face that Nicole didn’t quite recognize. She looked pale, and her mouth was pressed in a hard line.

“I’m at work, Wynonna,” Nicole said motioning around her office.

“Thanks, Sherlock,” Wynonna said sarcastically, “I need you to watch Alice for a little bit,” she repeated.

“Can’t Waves do it?” Nicole asked. It would be a heck of a lot more appropriate for a child to hang out in a historical society for a while than a police station.

“I need to talk to Waves…” Wynonna’s eye’s flicked down towards Alice, “alone.”

Nicole sighed. She wasn’t sure what was going on, but obviously, something was. She still couldn’t drop everything because Wynonna wanted to talk to Waverly. “Wynonna can’t it wait?”

“Hank knocked on my door today,” she said her voice thick with emotion. She almost looked as if tears were threatening to fall from her eyes.

“Who’s Hank?” Nicole asked. Then it all hit her. There was really only one person they knew that could cause Wynonna Earp that much distress. “You mean D-” A sharp glare from Wynonna cut her off. Wynonna’s eyes then softened, and her gaze shifted to Alice and then back to Nicole, and she gave a slight shake of her head. “Um…How…Why…What?” Nicole sputtered.

“All good questions,” Wynonna said with a sigh, “I don’t know the answers to any of them.”

“Is he…” Nicole’s voice trailed off. She shook her head trying to clear it. They had all assumed that they would never see Doc again. To hear that he was back was shocking, to say the least. 

“Apparently he’s gotten over his drinking problem too,” Wynonna said.

“Yeah, I’ll watch Alice for a bit,” Nicole said.

“Thanks, Nicole,” Wynonna said. There was no hint of sarcasm or teasing in her voice.

Nicole picked Alice up and sat her on the edge of her desk and walked over to Wynonna. She reached out and squeezed the other woman’s arm. “You okay?” she asked softly.

Wynonna shook her head and once again looked like she might cry. Then Nicole watched as she pulled herself together and leaned around Nicole to say to Alice, “Be good for your Aunt Nicole, I’ll be back in a few, kiddo.”

“Okay,” Alice replied. She was playing with the tape dispenser on Nicole’s desk. “Mama?”

“What?”

“What’s a ‘drinking problem?’” Alice asked.

“You’re Aunt’s going to explain it,” Wynonna said with a sarcastic wink to Nicole, who only glared back at her. “Thanks again,” she added more seriously.

“No problem,” Nicole said. Wynonna nodded and started out the door when Sam started walking in holding reports.

“Sherriff, I got those files…” he stopped and smiled when he saw Wynonna, “Hey there.”

Wynonna looked somewhat stricken and only mumbled, “Definitely can’t do this right now,” and pushed past him. Both Sam and Nicole watched as she walked across the bullpen and out of the station.

“Everything okay?” Sam asked Nicole. He looked concerned, and Nicole couldn’t blame him.

“Um…yeah,” Nicole replied as she turned back to Alice. “Everything’s fine.” She hoped she wasn’t lying.

***  
Waverly was in the small windowless office in the back of the historical society. Wynonna found her going through a dusty box of pictures that people had donated. She looked up and smiled when she saw Wynonna then clearly she realized something was wrong because her smile turned to a frown and she said, “What’s wrong? Is Alice okay?”

“She’s fine,” Wynonna said as she leaned against the wall and then let herself slide down, so she was sitting on the floor. She felt like her legs were no longer capable of holding her weight. “Doc’s back.”

She watched several emotions at once fall across Waverly’s face. “What?”

“There was a knock on the door, and he was just there,” Wynonna said with a far-off look in her eye.

“Is he…” Waverly asked in much the same way Nicole had.

“Human? Apparently,” Wynonna said. The memory of her hand pressed against his chest came rushing back.

“Are you okay?” Waverly asked as she stood up from the small desk and sat next to Wynonna on the floor.

Wynonna turned her head to look at her sister. She shook her head and the tears that had threatened since the moment she saw him now flowed down her cheeks. “Nope, Baby Girl, I am not okay.” Waverly hugged Wynonna. “I never thought I would see him again…I was just beginning to be okay with that,” Wynonna explained.

“I know,” Waverly said, her arms remained wrapped around her older sister.

“I didn’t know whether to kiss him or punch him,” Wynonna said with a snort.

“Knowing the two of you, I’m surprised you didn’t do both,” Waverly said with a smile as she wiped the tears from Wynonna’s cheeks.

“I didn’t do either…I told him to go,” Wynonna said, “I don’t think I should have done that, but I couldn’t deal.”

“What are you going to do?”

“I don’t know,” Wynonna said with a shake of her head, “I have to figure out a way to explain it to Alice. He wants to see her.”

“What about Sam?” Waverly asked.

“What about him?”

Waverly made a face Wynonna couldn’t quite read. “Don’t get me wrong I love Doc, but Sam cares about you Wynonna. He’s a good guy.”

“This doesn’t affect Sam and me,” Wynonna said.

“You really don’t think so?” Waverly said raising her eyebrows.

“I’m not breaking up with Sam,” Wynonna said firmly.

“Okay,” Waverly said, “How are you going to tell Alice?”

“I don’t know, Baby Girl, I don’t know.”

***  
A few hours later Wynonna returned home with Alice. She had been looking for the words to explain to a kid how her father had returned, but Wynonna was yet to find them. 

As they pulled up to the house, Wynonna felt a strange feeling in the pit of her stomach. She felt like they were being watched. She helped Alice out of the truck, and as they walked towards the house, Wynonna saw a flicker of movement by the barn.

“Alice, go in the house. Take your shoes off and stuff and I’ll be there in a second,” She told the little girl.

“What’s wrong?” Alice asked.

“Nothing. I just have to check something in the barn.”

“I want to come!”

Wynonna leaned down and planted a kiss on her daughter’s cheek. “I need you to listen to me and go in the house, okay?” she said into the girl’s ear.

“Okay,” Alice said with a shrug and turned to go into the house.

Wynonna watched her to make sure she made it all the way inside before she turned to the barn. She stalked across the distance. With every step, she was more and more pissed off until she reached the barn and pushed the door that she found slightly ajar all the way open and stepped inside.

Doc was standing there. He raised his hands in front of him as if he was surrendering. He must have recognized how angry she was by her face. “Wynonna let me explain,” he said.

“You’re losing your touch, Doc. You used to be sneakier. I never would have been able to spot you, even before…” Wynonna said.

“I am getting used to no longer having preternatural abilities,” he explained.

“You still seem to have the preternatural ability to be a pain in my ass. I told you to go.”

“I would never speak with her without your permission, but I had to see her Wynonna!”

“And what if she had seen you? She’s seen pictures of you, Doc. She knows what you look like,” Wynonna said her anger bubbling up.

Doc’s face softened, and he smiled. “You showed her pictures of me?”

Wynonna sighed and shook her head. “Of course, I showed her pictures of you. I had to explain to her that her conception wasn’t fucking immaculate.”

Doc raised an eyebrow but didn’t comment on that. He merely said, “She is my daughter, Wynonna. You cannot keep her from me.”

A rage that had been building up in Wynonna from the moment she saw him…no from the moment he left let loose. “I don’t give a flying fuck Doc. You haven’t been here. You weren’t here when she would barely look at me. You weren’t here when she used to cry all the time. You weren’t here when she wouldn’t speak to me or when she ran and hid from me. You weren’t here…” He hadn’t been there when Wynonna needed him either, and she knew that was really what was pissing her off. “I don’t care that you were there for seven minutes for her conception, I’m her mother, and I get to decide what’s best for her.”

“Wynonna, please…”

“No,” she said as she held up her hand, “I asked you to go. I told you I would let you know when you could come back. You didn’t listen to me. I may not be able to magically bar you from the house anymore, but John Henry Holliday you are trespassing on my land. You are not welcome here. And if I see you here again without an invitation…Well, we shoot trespassers in these parts.”

“Don’t do this Wynonna,” he begged.

“Go, Doc. Don’t let me catch you sneaking around the barn like a stray dog again,” she said resolutely. She turned and walked out of the barn.

She hadn’t really meant to say most of what she had said. She was angry. But it felt good to yell at him. It felt good to be able to yell at him. She never thought she’d be able to yell at Doc Holliday ever again.

She made her way into the house and found Alice sitting in the living room coloring. She looked up and smiled at her mother, and her blue eyes sparkled. Doc’s eyes.

***

All three women sat in front of the fireplace. Wynonna watched as Nicole rubbed small circles on Waverly’s back and Waverly leaned against her wife. Alice had been asleep for hours before any of them had been brave enough to talk about the elephant in the room named Doc.

“How do you think he did it?” Waverly asked.

“Does it matter?” Wynonna said.

“I guess not…”

“What are you going to do about him and Alice?” Nicole asked.

“I have to figure out how to tell her first.”

“I heard he was staying at Shorty’s again,” Nicole said.

“Not exactly surprising. He doesn’t have many other places to go besides here and there,” Waverly said. “He’s not kicking Nedley out as a bartender, is he?”

Nicole shrugged and shook her head. “I hope not.”

Wynonna stared into the flames in the fireplace. She could remember when she watched through a fire, a man she called Hank fix her mailbox. It had been so long ago, but she remembered how stupid he looked in his stolen jeans. And how much she had liked him despite herself. She recalled nights sat around the firepit with him laughing and drinking. She remembered nights spent doing other things as well.

“Wynonna?” Waverly’s voice cut through her thoughts.

“Yeah?” she replied.

“Are you okay?”

“Yeah, Baby Girl,” she said with a nod and reached out and patted Waverly’s leg.

“We were going to go to bed, but we don’t have to,” Nicole said.

“Go,” Wynonna said, “I’m going to sit here for a bit.”

“Are you sure?” Waverly asked.

“Go, you two. I’m fine,” she said with a smile she was sure didn’t reach her eyes.

“Okay,” Waverly said but sounded unsure as she and Nicole stood up. “Goodnight, Wynonna.”

“Goodnight.”

Wynonna returned her gaze back to the fire as Nicole and Waverly made their way upstairs. In the flames danced all the memories of her and Doc. The good and the bad. The happy and the sad. They all twirled and danced together. 

***  
Waverly was finishing hanging a picture on the wall when she heard the door to the historical society open. “Be right there,” she called to whoever it was. She came down off the step stool and turned to find Doc standing with his hat in his hands.

It had been a few days since he had returned. Wynonna seemed reticent to talk about him, and Waverly hadn’t wanted to push her.

“Waverly,” he said.

“Doc, what are you doing here?”

“This,” he said motioning around the room with his hat, “is something.”

“Yeah well, with the Curse broken I figured I should do something with all the research I compiled,” she said as she crossed her arms across her chest, “Don’t worry I didn’t hang pictures of you up.”

“I appreciate that,” he said. 

“What are you doing here?” she repeated. 

He looked down at the floor and shifted his weight. “I was hoping I could convince you to speak to Wynonna on my behalf.”

“You’re joking right?”

“Waverly, Alice is my daughter too. Wynonna can’t keep her from me.”

“Wynonna is a good mom.”

“I never had any doubt she would be.”

“She will do what is best for Alice,” Waverly said firmly.

Doc shook his head and placed his hat back on. “Waverly you do not know what I have been through to be standing here. The things that I did…the things that were done to me…some of them are unspeakable. The only thing that kept me going was the hope of seeing that little girl and Wynonna again.”

Waverly wasn’t unsympathetic to Doc, but she remembered how Wynonna was right after he had left. The thought of Wynonna returning to that terrified her. “When you left, it broke something in Wynonna. It was the straw that broke the camels back, I guess. The drinking got bad, scary bad, Doc. But she pulled herself out of that. She quit drinking.”

“She told me that liquor is no longer kept at the homestead,” he said.

“She doesn’t drink at all anymore.”

“I am glad to hear it.”

“Are you?” Waverly asked suspiciously.

“Why would I not be?” Doc asked confused.

“Thought you might miss your favorite drinking buddy.” There was coldness in her voice.

“Waverly, if you think that’s all Wynonna, was to me, a drinking buddy, you are sadly mistaken,” he said with a shake of his head.

“No,” she said more kindly, “That’s not all I think you were to each other, but it always was part of it. Wasn’t it?”

“I suppose it was…” his voice trailed off, “But it doesn’t mean it has to be.”

“She’s seeing someone, Doc,” Waverly said. She watched something flare in his eyes, but he didn’t say anything. She continued, “He seems to care about her. He’s good to her and good with Alice. She pulled her life together, Doc. Don’t fuck things up for her.”

“Waverly,” he said carefully, “I will not lie and say it was not my hope that Wynonna and I could return to what we once were to each other…or perhaps something more. But more than I have ever wanted Wynonna, I have wanted her to be happy and healthy. I would never fuck things up for her, as you so eloquently put it.”

“Glad to hear it.”

“I suppose that I shouldn’t take up any more of your time,” he said with a tip of his hat. He turned toward the door.

“You didn’t just leave Wynonna, you know?” she called after him. Waverly had been pushing down her own feelings about Doc leaving for a long time for Wynonna’s sake. But with him standing in front of her she couldn’t hold them back anymore.

He turned back to her and frowned. She held up her left hand to show her wedding band. “You missed our wedding.”

“I am sorry,” he said, “I’m sure you were a beautiful bride. You and Nicole both.” He smiled.

Tears formed in the corners of Waverly’s eyes though she fought not to let them escape. “You were supposed to be there, Doc. You were supposed to dance with me, and Nicole and Wynonna. We were supposed to make fun of your reaction to the YMCA…You didn’t just leave Wynonna. I was your friend too, wasn’t I?”

“You are something much dearer to me than a friend, Waverly,” he said. He stepped towards her and held out his arms. She let him hug her. “I am sorry I left. I am sorry I missed your wedding. I want to make amends. To you and Nicole, to Wynonna, to Alice, but I cannot if I am not permitted.”

Waverly stepped back away from him. “It’s not that easy, Doc.”

He nodded. “I suppose it is not.”

“Give her time,” she said as she reached back out and squeezed his arm. “Wynonna will come around, just give her time.”

“I no longer have all the time in the world,” he said.

“None of us do. Welcome to being mortal,” she said.

He nodded and smiled. “Good afternoon, Waverly.” He tipped his hat again and walked out.

***

Later Waverly returned home and found Alice and Wynonna sitting in the living room on the couch. Alice was sitting on Wynonna’s lap as Wynonna read to her. Waverly wasn’t sure what the book was, but Wynonna was making exaggerated “oinks” in Alice’s ear, making the little girl laugh.

It both seemed so strange to think of Wynonna Earp sitting with a child on her lap making funny noises, and also the most normal thing in the world. She had done it for Waverly. Waverly remembered sitting next to her sister as Wynonna read to her when they were children. Wynonna couldn’t have been more than ten, but Waverly could remember her acting out all the characters.

In her heart, Waverly had always known Wynonna would be a good mom…because she already had been. For most of her early life, Wynonna was the closest thing Waverly had to a mother…hell, to a parent at all.

Waverly watched for a few moments until the pair noticed her.

“Hi, Aunt Waverly,” Alice said when she saw Waverly.

“Hi, Alice,” Waverly said as she sat down on the couch next to them, “How was school?”

“Awesome! I got another gold star for cleaning up my desk,” Alice said enthusiastically.

“Are you sure she’s your daughter?” Waverly asked Wynonna jokingly.

“Ha-ha,” Wynonna said dryly. Then said to Alice, “Why don’t you go get it and show it to Aunt Waverly?”

“Okay,” the girl said as she jumped off Wynonna’s lap and ran upstairs.

When she had disappeared Wynonna asked Waverly, “What’s up?”

Waverly wasn’t sure how Wynonna had known anything was up, but she didn’t waste time questioning it. “Doc came and saw me today,” Waverly said.

“I am going to put my foot so far up his ass,” Wynonna said angrily.

“He wants to see Alice,” Waverly said, “I think he really does want to make up for being gone, to all of us.”

“I never thought he didn’t…” Wynonna’s voice trailed off. “I just was so shocked he was back and then so pissed he didn’t listen to me…I probably shouldn’t have threatened to shoot him.”

“You threatened to shoot him?” Waverly said raising her eyebrows.

Wynonna shrugged sheepishly. “Did I not mention that?”

“Wynonna…” Waverly said with a shake of her head. 

“I just don’t know how to tell her,” Wynonna said more seriously with a nod towards the stairs.

“I think,” Waverly said, “You just tell her.”

“Yeah…” Wynonna said, but she sounded unsure.

***  
The next morning Wynonna watched as Waverly finished clearing the breakfast dishes. Nicole had already left for the station. Alice hopped down off her chair. Wynonna stopped her with a gentle touch to her arm and said, “Alice sit back down, okay?”

“But I need to get my backpack,” Alice said.

“I’m going to go…unless you want me not to,” Waverly said as she walked to the door of the kitchen.

“We’re good,” Wynonna said with a halfhearted smile.

“Okay then,” Waverly said with a wave and then disappeared.

Wynonna turned her attention back to her daughter. “You’re not going to go to school today.”

“I’m not?”

“No Kiddo,” Wynonna said, “I need to talk to you about something, and then I figured we could hang out and have fun the rest of the day, just you and me. Sound good?”

“Okay!” the little girl said excitedly.

“Sit back down,” Wynonna said as she patted the girl’s chair. Alice sat back down, and Wynonna turned her own chair and Alice’s, so they were facing each other. She took a deep breath and let it out. “Do you remember when I told you about your Daddy?”

Alice nodded. “I have his eyes.”

Wynonna smiled. “That’s right, you do. Do you also remember I told you he was sick, and he went to get better?”

Alice nodded again.

“Well, Kiddo, he’s better now, and he’s back. He wants to see you,” Wynonna said. 

“I don’t want to meet him!” Alice cried. 

Wynonna put her hands on the girl’s shoulders and gave them a reassuring squeeze. “It’s okay, I know it’s scary to meet new people-“ She was cut off by Alice pushing her hands away and jumping out of the chair.

“I don’t want to meet him!” Alice yelled and then ran out of the room. Wynonna could hear her tiny feet as she ran up the stairs.

Wynonna had not been sure what Alice’s reaction would be. The girl was shy around new people but usually warmed up fast. She certainly hadn’t expected her five-year-old to pull a moody teenager and shout and run out of the room.

Wynonna rose and followed Alice up the stairs. She found the girl in her bedroom. Alice was sprawled out on her bed hugging her favorite stuffed animal, a bunny Waverly and Nicole had given her, with her back turned to the doorway and by extension Wynonna.

Wynonna calmly sat down on the edge of the bed. She sighed and rested her hand on Alice’s back. “What’s the rule, Alice? You can cry and be upset, but you can’t what?”

“Runaway,” Alice sniffed, then added, “Sorry.”

“It’s okay,” Wynonna said. She began to rub circles on the child’s back. “Can you tell me why you don’t want to meet your Dad?” The intensity of Alice’s reaction baffled Wynonna.

“I just don’t want to,” Alice repeated.

“Alice, Kiddo, I won’t make you meet him if you really don’t want to, but I want to know why?”

Alice sat up and wiped her face with the back of her sleeve. “I like living with you, and Aunt Waverly and Aunt Nicole, I don’t want to live with him,” she explained.

Wynonna frowned and said, “Why do you think…” she let her voice trail off. She was going to ask Alice why she thought meeting Doc meant going to live with him, but then it dawned on her. “Because when you met me, you had to come live with me.”

Alice nodded. 

God, she had fucked this poor kid up, Wynonna thought to herself. She tried to hold back the tears that were forming in her own eyes. She stroked her daughter’s hair and leaned close to her. “Alice, I want you to listen to me, okay?”

Alice nodded again.

“You are not going anywhere. This,” Wynonna said as she pointed around the room, “is your home. It’s where you were always meant to live, Alice. Things just got in the way, and you had to live with Aunt Gus for a while.”

“The bad men?” Alice asked.

Wynonna nodded, “Yes, the bad men got in the way. But they’re gone, and you never, ever have to live anywhere else, I promise you.” She leaned close to Alice and kissed her forehead. “You’re stuck with me, kid.”

“Promise?” Alice asked.

Wynonna smiled though there were tears in her eyes. “I promise.”

Alice leaned forward and hugged Wynonna’s neck. Wynonna wrapped her arms around her daughter and pulled her close. “I love you so much, Kiddo,” she said softly into Alice’s hair.

“I love you too, Mama,” Alice said. She released Wynonna and Wynonna pushed her hair out of her face and gave her another kiss on the cheek. “Is Daddy nice?” Alice asked.

Wynonna smiled. She could describe Doc as many things, but the first things that came to mind were not “nice.” Nice seemed far too bland a word to describe Doc Holliday. He was charming and infuriating. He was warm and funny and cold and ruthless. He was sexy as hell… “Yes, Alice. Your Daddy is very nice. And he loves you a whole lot.”

“Okay,” Alice said.

“Does that mean it’s okay for you to meet him?” Wynonna asked.

Alice shrugged. “I guess so.”

Not exactly a ringing endorsement, but for now Wynonna would take it.

***

Wynonna walked into Shorty’s the next day. It was mid-afternoon and the place was dead. Nedley stood behind the bar, polishing a glass.

“I see you got the bartender pose down,” Wynonna said to him as she came to lean against the bar.

“Wynonna, how are you?” Nedley asked.

“You know, any day you’re not six feet under is a good one,” she said as she drummed her fingers on the bar.

Nedley frowned. “Your father used to say that.”

“Sounds like Daddy.”

“Can I get you a soda pop or something?” he asked.

She shook her head. “No, is Doc around?”

“He’s in the basement,” Nedley said.

“Thanks,” Wynonna said, and she started to push herself away from the bar. She was stopped by Nedley speaking again.

“I know I haven’t said anything, but I saw you with your little girl at the wedding. I’ve seen how much you’ve changed since that screwed up teenager I used to arrest all the time,” he paused before continuing, “I didn’t much like your father. I thought he was a shitty sheriff. And maybe an even shittier man, but I don’t think he was shitty enough that he wouldn’t be proud of you.”

Wynonna blinked several times. Nedley rarely talked about her father. She didn’t ever think she had had a conversation with Nedley about him. And to be perfectly honest she wasn’t quite sure how she felt about the idea of him being proud of her.

“I’m proud of you too,” Nedley added, “Not that it means much. I just thought you should know.”

“It means something,” Wynonna said with a warm smile. She had always given Nedley a hard time, mostly because when she was a kid she always connected him with her father. Nedley had been her father’s deputy, and then he had replaced him. Granted it wasn’t his fault, but teenage Wynonna was never going to treat the man who had taken her father’s job well. She had grown to respect him over the years and even care for Nedley. It had taken a long time, but he had become a member of the weird little family that she had developed over the years. He wasn’t quite the father figure to Wynonna that he was to Nicole, but more of an uncle. It did mean something more than she could say that he was proud of her.

She started to turn away from the bar and then turned back. “Doc isn’t kicking you out of this place, right? You’re still going to be tending bar?”

“No, he actually offered me a percentage of the business. Said this place actually made money while I was running it,” Nedley replied.

“You going to take it?”

“Thinking about it.”

“Good,” Wynonna said with a smile, “You let me know if he’s a shitty boss. I’ll slap him around for you.”

“I’ll keep that in mind.”

She turned and started towards the entrance to the basement. She called over her shoulder, “Now don’t you go staring at my ass while I’m walking away.”

“I’ll try to restrain myself,” Nedley said dryly.

***

She found Doc in the basement counting bottles. He looked up as she came down the stairs and held his hands up defensively.

“Wynonna, I am sorry, but…” he started to say.

She cut him off by raising her own hand. “Day after tomorrow,” she said.

“Pardon me?” he said obviously confused.

“Come to the homestead, the day after tomorrow. Alice will be there,” she said.

A grin broke out on his face. “Wynonna, thank you.”

“You come, Doc, you have to know, that’s it. You’re her dad then.” He looked confused, but she continued, “You can’t disappear again. You’re here for the rest of your life, no matter how long that is. Too many people have come and gone in her life, and that’s my fault, but I won’t let it happen anymore. If you come, then you’re all in.”

“I am all in,” he said seriously.

“Okay,” she said.

“Thank you, Wynonna.”

She shook her head and said lightly, “You asshole. I was never going to keep her from you indefinitely. I know she’s your daughter as much as mine. You just had to give me time to explain things to her.”

“I am sorry.”

She started to turn back up the stairs, but then paused and turned back. “And so help me, Doc if you ever go behind my back to Waverly again to get me to do something, I will put my foot so far up your ass that you’ll taste shoe leather.”

“Understood.”

“Good. See you the day after tomorrow,” she said again as she started up the stairs.

“I will be there with bells on,” he called after her.

“Whatever gets you off,” she called back, “No kink shaming here.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you as always for reading. Sorry for the bit of lag in updating. As I said I have a fairly writing heavy course this semester and it's a bit harder to find time to write. I also waffled back in forth between adding what would have amounted to a filler chapter between the last chapter and this one, but I decided that it was best to get on with the meat of the story. So I hope you enjoy.


	10. Chapter 10

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Doc meets Alice for the first time. And Waverly and Nicole have a conversation about the future.

Wynonna was waiting on the porch when Doc drove up to the homestead. The red Camaro kicked up gravel on the drive. She stood as the car came to a stop and she watched as he climbed out. She almost laughed aloud when she saw how he was dressed. A grey suit with the jacket a little too long to be in style and a vest, a tie and of course his ever-present hat. He did appear to leave the gun belt at home.

Wynonna shook her head. Only Doc Holliday would dress in his Sunday best circa 1870 to meet a five-year-old. Bells on indeed.

She stepped off the porch and met him by the car. “Doc,” she said with a smile.

“Wynonna,” he said with a tip of his hat.

“You ready?” she asked. There seemed no reason to drag things out. Alice was inside playing with Waverly and Nicole.

He took a deep breath and straighten his suit jacket. She smiled at him amused. “I am,” he replied then stopped and said, “Wait.” He opened the car door and leaned in a pulled out a stuffed animal from the passenger seat. 

He held it up for Wynonna to see. “I brought it for Alice.” It was a bunny with large floppy ears. “Does she like bunnies? I thought she might like bunnies.”

Wynonna smiled and nodded. “Her favorite stuffed animal is a bunny.”

He looked alarmed. “Perhaps, then she will not want another one. I should have chosen something else, there was just so many…” his voice trailed off.

Wynonna did laugh at him now. Doc Holliday, gunslinger, who had faced down demons without hesitation was afraid a little girl wouldn’t approve of the stuffed animal he picked out. 

He looked a bit offended at Wynonna’s laughter, but her face softened, and she smiled at him. “She’s going to love it,” she told him, “Come on. Don’t keep your daughter waiting, Doc.”

He smiled and nodded. She led him up to the porch and opened the front door to the homestead. Alice was sitting on the living room floor next to Waverly and Nicole. She looked up as Wynonna entered.

Wynonna could feel Doc hesitate behind her as he caught a glimpse of his daughter. 

“Alice, come here,” Wynonna said as she took a couple steps towards her daughter and held out her hand. Alice stood up and took her mother’s hand. Wynonna turned, so both she and Alice were facing Doc. He removed his hat and nervously ran his hand through his hair. “Alice this is your Daddy.”

“Hello, Alice,” Doc said.

Alice stepped closer to Wynonna and hugged her mother’s leg. She stared at Doc for a moment before she said, “Hi,” very softly.

“It is a pleasure to meet you,” he said as he replaced his hat on his head. He then seemed to remember he still had the stuffed bunny clutched in his hand. “I am told you already have a bunny, perhaps this one could be his brother,” he said as he squatted down, so he was level with Alice and held out the stuffed animal.

Alice looked up at her mother, and Wynonna nodded and said, “It’s okay.” Alice cautiously stepped away from Wynonna’s leg and reached out and took the bunny. “What do you say?” Wynonna asked the little girl.

“Thank you,” the girl replied. Then she added, “My bunny is a girl. This one will be her sister.”

All the adults in the room laughed. Doc said, “Well she is a very pretty bunny. Almost as pretty as you are Alice.” Wynonna rolled her eyes, good-naturedly. Doc, always the charmer of women.

“You think I’m pretty?” Alice asked.

“Darling, I think you are the most beautiful thing I have ever seen,” Doc replied. He looked up and smiled at Wynonna. There seemed to be tears in the corners of his eyes. His smile seemed to say, “We made this.” Wynonna smiled and nodded back. Yes, they had.

 

***  
Nicole was in the kitchen mixing sauce in a bowl when she heard footsteps behind her. She turned and found Doc standing there. He was bareheaded, and his tie was loosened. He, Alice and Wynonna had gone upstairs to Alice’s room sometime earlier to have a tea party while Nicole and Waverly started dinner.

“I have been sent to fetch juice,” he said.

Nicole stopped what she was doing and wiped her hands on a towel. “There are pouches of juice in the fridge,” she said motioning towards the refrigerator.

He nodded and went over to the refrigerator. “Where is Waverly?” he asked as he pulled out several juice pouches and closed the fridge with his knee.

“We’re missing an ingredient for dinner, apparently,” she explained, “I said we could figure out how to make it work, but you know Waves. She wanted everything to be perfect for your first dinner with Alice.” Nicole smiled at the memory of Waverly being exceptionally cute while freaking out over some missing spice. “So, she ran into town to get it.”

“That is very kind of her,” he said with a smile. He put the juice down on the counter and then picked up one of the pouches and examined it. “What in tarnation…” his voice trailed off.

“The straw is on the side,” Nicole said amused.

He nodded seriously as he pulled off the tiny straw and unwrapped it. Nicole watched bemused as the man she had once watched split a bullet with another bullet struggle to insert a straw into the silver pouch of juice.

She finally took pity on him after several attempts that only succeeded in bending the straw. She took the pouch from him and inserted the straw and handed it back. “It’s all in the angle,” she said with a laugh.

“I find that’s true of many things in life,” he said wryly, “Thank you, Sherriff.”

Nicole laughed. “How long have we known each other, Doc? Do you think you might start calling me, Nicole?”

Doc’s face became more serious. “I do call you Nicole when I am speaking about you, but you have earned the title of Sherriff, it seems rude not to address you as such.”

“I appreciate that,” Nicole said with a soft smile, “But we’re practically family at this point. I think it’s okay for you to call me Nicole.”

“There is no ‘practically.’ You are the aunt of my daughter. Does that not make you my sister?” he said thoughtfully.

“I’m not sure it’s that simple,” Nicole replied. 

“I do not believe it’s that complicated either,” he said with a smile. 

Nicole smiled back. Perhaps he was right. She couldn’t love both him and Wynonna anymore if they were her siblings. Family didn’t equal blood or even any typical societal conventions. If nothing else, their messed up adopted family had proven that. “Brother or not I am glad you’re back, Doc.”

“Thank you, Nicole,” he said. He started to pick up the remaining juice but then hesitated and asked, “May I ask why you seem to be the only member of this family not angry with me?”

Nicole sighed and leaned back against the counter. “You can’t ever tell Waverly, or Wynonna I said this.” He nodded in agreement, and she continued, “But I think you’re leaving might have been the best thing. When you left, Wynonna’s drinking got out of control. But we had all ignored and rationalized her drinking for years,” she paused and pointed at her own chest, “me included.”

“I don’t understand,” he said.

“They say addicts don’t get better until they hit rock bottom. I think you leaving finally made her hit rock bottom. She finally realized she couldn’t be a good mom and a barely functional alcoholic at the same time,” she paused again but then smiled, “But now, Alice has a mom who’s sober and a Dad who’s human. If you hadn’t left, I’m not sure she would have had either of those things. I think things worked out the way they were supposed to.”

“I wouldn’t think you would be a subscriber to the idea of fate,” Doc said.

Nicole shook her head. “I’m not. Fate implies that we have no choice. I’m standing here because of the choices I made and so are you Doc. But I sometimes think if we listen the universe taps us on the shoulder and tells us the best way to go. We just have to listen. I spent the worst day of my life in Purgatory when I was six, and then I got to spend the best day of my life here when I married Waverly,” she grinned, “If that wasn’t the universe sending me where I was supposed to be, I don’t know what is.”

“That is a very interesting way to look at things,” he said with a nod, “I am sorry I missed your wedding though,” he added.

“Me too. Maybe I’ll dance at yours someday though,” she said with a smile.

He furrowed his brow. “And who will I be marrying?”

“Oh, I don’t know,” she said lightly with a knowing smile.

“I am told that Wynonna has a suitor.”

“Yeah,” Nicole said with a shrug, “His name is Sam, and he’s one of my deputies. He’s a good guy,” she said then added, “But he’s not Doc Holliday, and she’s still Wynonna Earp.” 

“Doc!” Wynonna’s voice sounded like it was coming from the top of the stairs, “What are you crushing the grapes yourself?”

Nicole and Doc both laughed. “It appears that I am being summoned,” he said as he picked up the remaining pouches of juice and started out of the kitchen. He turned back and said, “Thank you, Nicole.”  
“You’re welcome,” she said with a smile.

She had watched Doc and Wynonna dance around each other for too long to believe it would ever truly be over between them. Maybe since they both seemed to be in better places, one of them would finally listen to the universe when it tapped them on the shoulder.

 

***  
Wynonna watched from the doorway of the kitchen as Doc and Alice sat on the floor in the middle of the living room. Doc held up his cards and scrutinized them. Wynonna’s heart almost burst as she watched Alice mimic his movements.

“I am afraid, that I am going to have to tell you to Go Fish,” he said seriously. Alice frowned and picked up a card from the pile. She added it to her cards. “Do you have any kings?” Doc then asked.

“Go Fish!” Alice cried with a laugh.

Wynonna felt Waverly come to stand next to her and slip her arm through Wynonna’s. “Dinner’s almost ready,” Waverly told her.

“Okay,” Wynonna said absentmindedly.

“That’s pretty darn cute,” Waverly said with a nod towards Doc and Alice.

“Yeah…I honestly don’t know whether to be annoyed that she’s so much happier than she was when she first met me though,” Wynonna said half-jokingly. She didn’t want to be that petty, but she couldn’t help thinking it.

Waverly frowned and tugged at Wynonna’s arm, so Wynonna was looking directly at her. “She’s only happier because she has you,” Waverly said seriously, “She’s only happier meeting him because she has a mother she knows loves her and who would never let anyone bad into her life.”

Wynonna smiled and reached over and squeezed Waverly’s arm. “Thanks, Baby Girl.”

“You’re welcome, Wynonna.”

A short time later they all sat down and ate dinner. It was vegan, but even Wynonna couldn’t say much as it was quite tasty. Alice laughed when Doc got sauce on his mustache. And Wynonna couldn’t help but smile when Doc pretended not to know what she was talking about.

After dinner, Doc went to say his goodbyes to Alice and Wynonna watched as he kneeled in front of her in the living room.

“Alice, thank you for letting me spend the day with you,” he said.

“You’re welcome,” Alice replied.

“Do you think that if your mother says it’s alright, that we might do it again?”

Alice looked back at her mother, and Wynonna nodded. “Okay,” the little girl said excitedly. 

Doc smiled and winked at her. He then took her hand and kissed the back of it. Alice giggled as his mustache tickled the back of her hand. Doc stood up, and Alice stepped forward and hugged him around the waist. He looked down at the girl and then back up at Wynonna. He looked like he might burst out into tears. She smiled at him.

Alice released him, and Wynonna said, “Alice why don’t you go upstairs and start to put your pajamas on. I’m going to walk your Dad out and then I’ll be up in a minute.”

“Okay,” the little girl said as she skipped up the stairs.

Doc said his goodbyes to Nicole and Waverly, and then Wynonna walked him out to his car. The night air was cool, and Wynonna wrapped her arms around herself to keep warm.

“Thank you, Wynonna,” he said as he stood by his car.

“I told you, you don’t have to thank me…” she started to say, but he cut her off.

“Not for letting me see her…for her…for being her mother…” his voice trailed off, and he swallowed and looked down, “I am not sure how to say it.”

“It’s okay. I think I know what you mean,” she said, “You’re welcome.” She would have a hard time articulating it as well, but she felt the same way about Doc. He had given her Alice. Without him Alice wouldn’t exist, at least she wouldn’t be exactly the same little girl. No matter what, a part of Wynonna would always love him for being a part of Alice.

“She is an extraordinary little girl,” he said with a grin.

“Yeah,” she said with a smile that matched his, “We did pretty good.”

“I don’t know I had much to do with it,” he said, “Wynonna you are changed from the last time I saw you…for the better.”

“I had to change for her,” Wynonna explained.

“I suppose I will have to as well,” he said with a nod.

“It’s worth it,” Wynonna said.

“I can see that,” he said with a tip of his hat, “Goodnight Wynonna.”

Wynonna closed her eyes and let the sound of her name from his lips roll over her. “Goodnight, Doc.”

***  
Waverly was putting lotion on her hands in front of the mirror in their bedroom when she felt Nicole step behind her and snake her arms around Waverly’s waist. Waverly leaned back against her wife and turned her head slightly, so she could press a kiss to the side of Nicole’s face.

“It was a good day, wasn’t it?” Waverly said.

Nicole nuzzled Waverly’s neck and said, “It was. Dinner was awesome by the way.”

“Thanks. Wynonna didn’t even complain,” Waverly said with a laugh. “Doc is good with Alice,” she added.

“He is,” Nicole murmured as she pressed her lips against Waverly’s neck.

“Hey, Baby,” Waverly said hesitantly. She had wanted to talk to Nicole for a while but seeing Wynonna and Doc together with Alice had just brought the feeling to the forefront of Waverly’s mind.

“Yeah,” Nicole said.

“Can we talk?” Waverly asked.

Nicole loosened her arms around Waverly. “Of course. Is everything okay?”

Waverly turned, so she was facing Nicole. “Yeah, I was just thinking about Doc being back and Wynonna and Alice…and how nice it was them being all together…” her voice trailed off.

“It was nice…” Nicole said with a raise of her eyebrows.

“I want one,” Waverly said suddenly.

“A Doc?” Nicole said confused.

Waverly laughed, “No, an Alice…I mean not an Alice…I mean I would love it if they were like Alice,” she babbled.

“Waves, you’re going to have to give me a clue to what you’re talking about,” Nicole said with a bemused smile.

“A baby, I want a baby,” Waverly said with a sheepish smile. They had talked about kids a few times, and they had always agreed that they wanted them, but it had always been a something for the future conversation.

Nicole smiled radiantly back at her. “Me too,” she said.

“I mean I want one now…I mean not right this second, I know that’s impossible, but soon,” Waverly continued.

Nicole gently tipped Waverly’s chin up and said again, “Me too,” as she leaned down and kissed her.

“You do?” Waverly said as the kiss broke. Nicole was ever practical, and Waverly feared she wouldn’t see it as a good time for them to start trying.

“I do,” Nicole said with a nod, “I want to have babies with you Waverly Earp.”

Waverly grinned. “I know we mostly talked about adoption, but I kind of want to be pregnant…is that okay?”

“Of course, that’s okay,” Nicole said.

Waverly pulled Nicole down and kissed her. She still wasn’t entirely sure how she had gotten so lucky to find Nicole, but all she did know was she couldn’t wait to raise a family with her. They separated, and Waverly stared up into Nicole’s soft brown eyes. “I started to do some research…” Waverly said, “There’s a clinic in the city.”

“You can show me the binder, tomorrow,” Nicole said with a grin.

“How did you know there was a binder?” Waverly asked confused. She had been doing research on various options for them having kids for months, but she had kept it to herself.

Nicole laughed. “Because you’re a planner,” she said jokingly, “I bet it’s color-coded.”

“Only partially,” Waverly said with a frown.

Nicole kissed her forehead. “I love how organized you are, Baby, never change.”

Waverly smiled and leaned into Nicole who wrapped her arms around Waverly. She felt warm, safe, loved and extraordinarily happy.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks as always for reading. This is probably the fluffiest of the chapters, but fear not, angst will be returning soon. We also in the home stretch of this work. I'm not sure exactly sure how many chapters it will take, it will depend on when I feel I come to a natural chapter break while writing. We shall see, but I'm guessing two more...it might only be one. Either way, as I've mentioned I do have plans to continue in this same continuity, only focusing more on Waverly and Nicole instead of Wynonna (she still, of course, will be there though). And to be perfectly honest, the last section of this chapter mostly serves to set that next fic up. I'm really touched by all the nice comments for this fic so I hope you'll enjoy the next one as well.
> 
> On an added note, the word "bunny" or "bunnies" becomes hilarious when you read it out loud in Doc's accent. I generally read all the dialog out load (especially Doc's) to make sure it sounds like something the character would actually say, and I cracked myself up saying "bunny," repeatedly.


	11. Chapter 11

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Wynonna struggles with telling Sam about Doc...She also struggles with the feelings that Doc's return have stirred up within her.

Wynonna shifted her weight back and forth as she steeled herself to knock. She had been avoiding the conversation for days, but she knew she needed to do it. It didn’t change anything, she had told herself a dozen times, but in her heart, she wasn’t sure that was true.

“Don’t be a pussy, Earp,” she mumbled to herself and knocked on the door.

It was a few seconds before the door swung open and Sam appeared. He looked surprised, but not displeased to see her. Wynonna worried he might be angry. She had pretty much blown him off completely since Doc’s return.

“Hey,” he said with a smile, “What’s up?”

“Nothing, I’m sorry I’ve been kind of MIA lately,” she said with a shrug.

He opened the door wider and motioned for her to come in. 

“I won’t lie, I was kind of worried about you. You looked like something was wrong the last time I saw you at the station, but Sherriff Haught told me you were fine,” he explained as he took her jacket and hung it up.

She nodded and then grabbed his arm to still him and leaned up and kissed him. It wasn’t a friendly kiss hello. It was something deeper, that held promises of something more. She told herself it was to reassure Sam that everything was fine between them, but in truth, it was just as much to remind herself of the same thing. “I just had a lot on my plate,” she said as the kiss ended.

“Well, we can always make up for lost time,” he said with a smirk as he leaned in again.

Wynonna stopped him with a hand on his chest. “Sorry, for starting something I can’t finish,” she said, “But we need to talk.”

Sam looked confused but nodded and said, “Okay. Do you want some coffee?”

Wynonna wanted some whiskey, but coffee would do. She nodded and followed Sam into his kitchen. She watched as he pulled cups out and filled the coffee machine with water.

“Hey,” he said suddenly, “Have you seen the new bartender at Shorty’s?” 

Wynonna’s blood ran cold. Someone had told him. Nicole had sworn not to, but really anyone could have. “Why?” she asked hesitantly.

“He dresses up like an actual Old West gunslinger,” he said with a laugh. “He even was wearing a gun on his hip. I had to check with Sherriff Haught to make sure it wasn’t against a town ordinance or anything.”

“And what did Nicole say?”

He shrugged, walked over to Wynonna and handed her a cup. “She said to leave him be. But what a trip, right?”

“Yeah, that’s Doc,” Wynonna said with a shrug.

“You’ve met him?”

“He’s not the new bartender, he’s the old bartender. He actually owns the place. He’s just been out of town for a while, and Nedley was running things for him,” she said.

Sam seemed to contemplate that and said, “Good to know,” he paused and then added, “So what did you want to talk about?”

Wynonna sighed and wandered out of the kitchen and into the living room. She could feel Sam follow her and they both sat down on the couch.

“Everything okay?” he asked, “You’re starting to worry me.”

Wynonna smiled and patted his leg. “I didn’t mean to. It’s actually not that big of a deal,” she said even though it was a lie. Doc was back-it was a huge deal.

“Okay,” he said, “So tell me.”

Wynonna cleared her throat and said, “So you remember when I said Alice’s father wasn’t in the picture?”

“Yeah.”

“Well, there’s a new picture. And it turns out he’s in it,” she said.

“I don’t understand?” Sam said.

“He’s back in town,” Wynonna clarified.

“The bartender…” Sam said as his voice trailed off. He turned, so he wasn’t quite facing Wynonna anymore.

“His name is Doc…Well actually his nickname is Doc, but you get my point.”

“So, what does this mean?”

“It means he’ll be seeing Alice,” Wynonna said with a shrug.

“And for us?” Sam asked as he turned, so he was back to facing Wynonna.

“It doesn’t change anything between us,” Wynonna said.

“You really think that?” he asked disbelievingly.

“Well it came out of my mouth, so I must,” Wynonna said caustically. “I’m only telling you, so you know why a guy with a cowboy hat is hanging around with my kid,” she added.

“Gee thanks,” he replied sarcastically. “I just don’t understand how you can let this guy waltz back into your life.”

“Waltz, two-step, hell he can do the electric slide for all I care. He’s Alice’s father, he has a right to know her. She has a right to know him.”

Sam shook his head and said, “He got you in trouble, and then he left you.”

Wynonna scowled and said, “Got me in trouble? What are we in the fifties? I wasn’t a teenager. I was an adult woman. Doc didn’t get me ‘in trouble.’ We had sex, and I got pregnant.”

“Fine he got you pregnant, and then he left. I don’t understand how you can forgive that so easily,” Sam said.

“First of all, not the exact order of events. Secondly, Doc left because he was dealing with his own shit,” Wynonna sighed she couldn’t believe she was defending Doc’s leaving, but Sam criticizing him pissed her off more than she ever expected. “And thirdly, he’s Alice’s father for better or worse. He gets to be in her life.”

“And what if he takes off again. He doesn’t seem like the most reliable guy.”

“He won’t.”

“How can you be so sure?”

“Because he told me he won’t,” Wynonna said firmly.

“Look, Wynonna I’m just saying…” Sam started to say.

“Stop,” Wynonna said cutting him off, then added, “Look, when it comes to Alice and who is or is not in her life, you don’t get to have an opinion, sorry. If you don’t like it, there’s the door,” she said as she pointed towards the front door of the apartment.

Sam frowned and looked confused. “We’re in my apartment…”

“Right,” Wynonna said sheepishly and lowered her hand, “You know what I mean.”

Sam sighed and said, “Okay.” 

Wynonna wasn’t quite sure she was convinced by his tone, but she decided not to push any further. They fell into an uncomfortable silence.

“His name is really Doc?” Sam finally said.

“Yeah.”

“Like Doc Holliday?”

“Ha, well…” Wynonna said awkwardly, “His name actually is Doc Holliday.” She wasn’t sure how to explain Doc’s name to Sam. She was tempted not to mention it at all, but he was bound to hear it around Shorty’s.

Sam frowned again. “So, how many descendants of famous gunslingers are running around this town?”

“Right…he’s a descendant of Doc Holliday.” Wynonna nodded. That was an excellent explanation.

***

In the grand scheme of things Nicole really wanted to do with her Saturday night, going on a double date with one of her deputies was pretty far down on the list. Hell, she would have rather stayed home and babysat Alice with Waverly than stand and watch Sam be overly clingy, and Wynonna look annoyed, but Waverly had insisted that it would be good for all of them.

Sam was definitely clingy. He had been acting oddly since the group had walked into Shorty’s and found Doc was standing behind the bar. He had asked Nicole questions about Doc over the last few days, but Nicole had either given him the vaguest of answers or told him to ask Wynonna. Nicole wanted to be in the middle of Wynonna’s relationship drama even less than she wanted to watch Sam pat Wynonna on the ass when she made a shot.

“Nice, shot, babe,” he said and leaned in to kiss Wynonna’s cheek. 

Wynonna managed to dodge him and simply said, “I’m not sure you should be congratulating the person who’s going to kick your ass.”

Waverly had thought it was a fun idea to play pool in teams, with cops versus Earps. So, Sam and Nicole were paired together as were Wynonna and Waverly.

“Just showing good sportsmanship,” he said with a grin. If he was aware Wynonna was annoyed with him, he wasn’t showing it.

“Go ahead, Baby Girl,” Wynonna said to Waverly, almost entirely ignoring Sam.

Waverly lined up a shot. Nicole watched her furrow her brow in concentration. Nicole couldn’t suppress her own smile over how charming she found Waverly’s expression. After a moment she took the shot. She almost certainly didn’t hit the ball she was aiming at, she first hit one of Sam and Nicole’s balls, but eventually, a ball from her group rolled into the pocket.

Waverly stood up and beamed. “I made it,” she said.

“Way to go, Baby Girl,” Wynonna said as she high fived her.

“Nice shot, Baby,” Nicole said with a smile.

Sam cleared his throat. “I don’t mean to be that guy, but it’s a foul. You have to strike a ball from your own group with the cue ball first. We have ball in hand,” he said motioning between Nicole and himself.

“I think we can ignore that rule,” Nicole said. She really couldn’t care less about winning a stupid pool game, but she did care about how Waverly’s face fell a little when she heard what Sam said.

“I mean there are rules for a reason,” Sam said. His voice was even, but he seemed annoyed that Nicole didn’t agree with him.

“It’s a friendly game, Sam,” Nicole said turning to him. She smiled, but it didn’t reach her eyes, “I think we can let this one go.”

“I’m just saying…” he started to say.

“Jesus, Sam. The ball went into the fucking pocket. Stop being such a dick about it,” Wynonna said coldly.

“It’s fine, Wynonna,” Waverly said, “I’ve never been very good at pool. I guess it’s your guys’ shot,” she said with a sweet smile obviously trying to defuse the tension.

Sam shook his head. He apparently realized he was outnumbered and that he was being kind of a dick. “No, I’m sorry, Waverly. Sherriff Haught is right, it’s just a friendly game.”

“And you,” Nicole said as she walked over to Waverly and slipped her arm around her, “Have other talents besides pool.” Nicole leaned down and gave Waverly a quick peck. She was rewarded with a grin from Waverly. There wasn’t anything better in the world than seeing Waverly smile.

“God, you two are disgusting,” Wynonna said with a shake of her head.

“I think it’s nice you two are so comfortable showing affection,” Sam said. Nicole couldn’t miss the implication in his tone, that Wynonna wasn’t.

Wynonna ignored him again and took a shot. The ball went into the pocket, and she straightened. Sam didn’t bother to congratulate her on the shot. Nicole glanced down at Waverly, and they shared a look. Trouble in paradise.

***

“Who do I have to screw to get a drink around here?” Wynonna said playfully, as she walked up to the bar and found Doc bent down. He was rummaging around pushing bottles out of the way. Wynonna had a clear view of his ass, and she had to admit it had always been a very nice one.

He straightened up and turned around looking annoyed until he realized it was Wynonna. “Well I’d be happy to volunteer,” he said returning her playful tone.

“Can I get two club soda’s with lime and a white wine,” Wynonna said.

He nodded and poured drinks. “You all, having a pleasant evening?”

Wynonna wasn’t sure it could be described as that. Mostly Sam was annoying the ever-loving shit out of her. He was both clingy and oddly distant, which was both confusing and infuriating. She also hadn’t taken kindly to him having a stick up his ass about the rules of eight ball. When even Nicole was less uptight, there was definitely a problem.

“Yeah we are,” she said.

“May I ask who is minding Alice?”

“Jeremy and Robin,” Wynonna said.

“I wish you had asked me,” he said.

“You want to babysit?” She raised an eyebrow. Doc was good with Alice, there was no doubt about that, but she hadn’t expected him to volunteer to spend an evening with a five-year-old.

“I don’t believe it is considered ‘babysitting’ when it is my own child,” he said.

“You’re working anyway,” Wynonna said motioning around the bar.

“I could have asked Nedley to take tonight,” he said then continued, “Wynonna, I know I cannot make up for lost time, but I would like to take every opportunity I can to spend time with Alice.”

“Okay,” she said seriously, “Next time I’ll call you.”

“Thank you,” he said with a nod and a smile.

“Everything okay?” Sam said from behind her. She felt him come up behind her and wrap his arm around her waist. She didn’t avoid it mostly because she didn’t want Doc to think anything was wrong between them.

“Yeah, just getting drinks.” She paused and then said, “I guess you two have met?”

“A pleasure to see you again, Officer Donovan,” Doc said with a nod.

“Yeah, though I didn’t really know who you were last time. Nice to see you too.”

Wynonna picked up the drinks off the bar, handing Sam his, “Come on,” she said, “If we leave them alone too long, Waverly and Nicole are bound to start making out.”

***  
“You think she’s going to come home with us or stay with him?” Waverly asked. 

Nicole looked at her wife and raised her eyebrows, “I can’t imagine she’s going with him,” she said. Waverly and Nicole were sitting in Nicole’s cruiser watching Wynonna say goodbye to Sam. The plan at the beginning of the night was vague as to whether Wynonna was going to stay in town overnight or come home. Nicole didn’t think the answer seemed vague anymore.

“What do you think happened?” Waverly asked.

“I think Doc happened,” Nicole said with a shrug.

“He promised he wasn’t going to screw things up for her,” Waverly said sourly.

“I don’t think it’s his fault that Sam is jealous,” Nicole said.

“I guess…” Waverly said. “Maybe I shouldn’t have suggested the double date? At least not at Shorty’s.”

Nicole threaded her fingers through Waverly’s and kissed the back of her hand. “Not a lot of other options. I don’t think Pussy Willows would have been super appropriate either,” Nicole said jokingly then added, “Look, whatever is going on between them would have happened sooner or later anyway. Don’t you dare blame yourself.” 

Waverly sighed and smiled at Nicole.

Nicole looked back out the window. Sam and Wynonna were talking. They didn’t appear to be yelling or even arguing, but neither seemed happy. 

Wynonna ended the conversation with a shrug and walked back to Nicole’s car. She pulled the back door open and got in.

“Everything okay?” Waverly asked her.

“Fine,” Wynonna said in a tone that left no room for further discussion.

Nicole let go of Waverly’s hand and started the car. “I guess we’re going home then?”

“Just drive, Haught,” Wynonna said.

***

It wasn’t that late when they got home, but Alice was already in bed. Nicole and Waverly were still downstairs chatting with Jeremy and Robin, but Wynonna had slunk upstairs with the excuse of checking on Alice.

Wynonna stood in her daughter’s doorway and watched the little girl softly snore. It had been a crappy night. Watching Alice sleep somehow made it all better though. 

She knew that part of Sam’s behavior was because he was reacting to her, but that didn’t make it any less annoying. He had apologized by the truck when they said goodbye, but to be honest, Wynonna couldn’t muster up the energy to care all that much. She didn’t really care if he was sorry, or if he wasn’t. She didn’t care if he was jealous or if he wasn’t. And she also realized that her apathy probably didn’t bode well for their relationship.

Wynonna liked Sam. She really did. She generally had fun when she was with him, but that was about it. And she feared for him it was something more. If she were a better person, she’d probably tell him that. But Wynonna had never been that good of a person, especially when it came to relationships.

She left Alice sleeping in her bed and retreated to her own room. She readied for bed when she heard her phone chirp a notification. Sam again apologizing. She sighed and put the phone down without responding. She would deal with him in the morning. 

She had just crawled into bed when she heard a soft knock on the door and Alice’s voice, “Mama, can I come in?”

“Sure, kiddo,” Wynonna said as she sat up in bed. The door swung open, and Alice walked in dragging the bunny Doc had given her by the ears. “What’s wrong?”

“I had a bad dream,” Alice said, “Can I sleep with you?”

Wynonna sighed. She knew that she should probably nip the sleeping with her thing in the bud now, but when her daughter stared at her with those big blue eyes, she was hard-pressed to say no. Wynonna lifted the covers and said, “Yeah, okay.”

Alice smiled and jumped into bed. Wynonna fixed the covers over both of them and stroked her daughter’s hair and said, “You actually have to lay down and go to sleep, Alice.” Wynonna reached over and switched off the light. They both laid down, and Wynonna closed her eyes.

“Mama?” Alice’s voice cut through the darkness.

Wynonna opened one eye and squinted at Alice. “That doesn’t sound like sleeping.”

“Do you love Daddy?”

Where the hell had that come from? Alice thankfully had never asked about Wynonna’s relationship with Doc before. “Why?” Wynonna asked as she propped herself up on one elbow.

“’Cause Skylar’s mommy, and daddy don’t live together anymore, but she says they yell at each other all the time, but you don’t yell at Daddy. And her daddy can’t play with her at her house, but Daddy comes here. Does that mean you love Daddy?”

Wynonna sighed. Pretty much the last thing Wynonna wanted to do was explain dysfunctional relationships to her grade-schooler. “Sometimes people that used to love each other fight, it happens.”  
“But you don’t fight with Daddy. Does that mean you love him?”

The idea that Wynonna didn’t fight with Doc almost made her laugh. There was virtually no one else on earth that could make Wynonna angrier than Doc Holliday. He pushed her buttons in ways that no one else did. There was practically no one else she’d rather fight with either.

Wynonna reached out and pushed a strand of hair behind Alice’s ear. “Yes, I love your Daddy. He gave me you.”

“Then why doesn’t he live with us?”

Wynonna loved that Alice was smart and inquisitive, but there were moments she really wished she was just a little bit less curious. “Alice, sometimes even when grownups love each other they don’t live together.”

“But Aunt Waverly and Aunt Nicole love each other, and they live together.”

“Remember, kiddo,” Wynonna said as she leaned in and blew a razzberry against the side of Alice’s neck, “Grownups are weird.”

Alice laughed and squirmed away from Wynonna. “You’re silly, Mama.”

“Yes, and you need to go to sleep,” Wynonna said as she patted the spot in bed next to her, “Come on and lay down.”

Alice laid down, and Wynonna placed a kiss on the girl’s temple. “Goodnight Mama,” Alice said.

“Goodnight Alice,” Wynonna said.

***

Wynonna watched as Alice and Doc played near the fire pit. The late afternoon sun filtered through the dust that hung in the air, giving the scene a dreamy quality. Doc was on one knee in front of his daughter showing her how to tie some sort of knot. He was a bit early for his babysitting duties, but Wynonna didn’t mind watching him play with Alice.

She and Sam had made up…mostly. There was still a bit of tension between them, but Wynonna wasn’t ready to let him go. Part of her knew it was selfish, but she couldn’t help herself. If she ended things with Sam, then she would actually have to deal with what she felt for Doc, and she wasn’t ready for that. She didn’t think she could deal with Doc Holliday breaking her heart again.

So here she was waiting for Sam to pick her up so they could go to some party at one of his friend’s houses. Usually, Wynonna would have been smarter than to have Doc hanging around when Sam arrived, but Waverly and Nicole had picked that particular weekend to head into the city and spend a romantic couple days in a hotel. As much as Wynonna liked to tease them, she really couldn’t begrudge them some time alone. So, with them out of town, she kept her promise to Doc to have him watch Alice.

Wynonna watched as Doc handed the rope he was holding to Alice, and then he guided her through tying it herself. She smiled as she watched Alice put on a solemn face and even stick her tongue out as she concentrated.

“Now, just pull it tight,” Doc said as he helped Alice. 

“I did it,” the little girl exclaimed holding up the rope.

“You, darling, are a natural,” Doc said as he removed his hat from his head and placed it on his daughter’s head.

Alice laughed and turned to Wynonna and cried, “Mama, look I’m a cowgirl.” The hat slipped down over her eyes and Doc helped her straighten it. He turned to face Wynonna and smiled.

“I can see,” Wynonna said. She tried to keep her voice even, but her heart clenched at the sight of Doc and Alice together. “I’ll be right back,” she muttered as she wandered towards the barn. Doc frowned as she passed them, but Alice just ran around with Doc’s hat still on her head.

She managed to keep the tears that were forming in the corners of her eye’s from falling until she was safely in the barn. Over the years she had had dreams like that; Doc and Alice playing together while she watched. Dreams of the three of them together as a family. She had never really believed that they’d ever come true.

“Wynonna,” Doc’s voice called softly from behind her. Apparently’ he had gotten used to no longer having preternatural abilities because she hadn’t heard him follow her. “Are you alright?”

“Yeah,” Wynonna said wiping the tears from her eyes, “Just got some dust in my eyes.”

Doc smiled kindly. “I’ve been known to get that same dust in my eyes when I see that little girl too.”

“You asshole,” Wynonna said with a smile.

“I am forever your asshole,” he said with a grin and then stepped towards her and opened his arms.

Wynonna leaned against him and felt his arms wrap around her. She hugged him back. “I just never thought we’d get this, you know? You, me and her together.”

“Nor did I.”

“I must be getting mushy in my old age,” she said as she sniffed back more tears.

He tightened his arms around her for a moment and then said, “No, no mushiness that I can detect.” She couldn’t see his face, but she could hear the grin in his voice.

She thwapped him in the stomach with the heel of her hand. He let out a sharp breath and then laughed. “You’re not funny,” she said.

“I think I’m exceedingly humorous,” he said.

She shook her head as they fell into a comfortable silence. It was far too long a hug to ever have been described as friendly. She felt his mustache tickle her skin as he pressed a kiss to her forehead. She breathed in his sent, gun oil, leather, and something uniquely Doc. It was comforting. It was home.

They were interrupted by the door to the barn swinging open and Alice running in still wearing Doc’s hat. She was followed closely by Sam.

“Sam’s here,” Alice loudly announced.

Wynonna and Doc quickly separated but Wynonna saw a flash in Sam’s eyes, and she knew he had seen that they had been holding each other.

“Hey there,” Sam said with a smile that didn’t reach his eyes.

“Hey,” Wynonna replied, trying to keep her own voice neutral.

“Officer Donovan,” Doc said as he held out his hand for the younger man to shake.

Doc looked at Wynonna and then back at Doc’s hand. He finally stepped forward and shook it. “Doc,” he said.

“A pleasure to see you again,” Doc said though Wynonna heard a hint of sarcasm in his tone.

“I bet it is,” Sam said with much more than a hint of sarcasm. He also squeezed Doc’s hand tighter and pulled it closer to him. “I got to worry about you and my girl?” he asked. There was a smile on his lips, and his tone was joking, but his eyes were cold.

“Excuse me?” Wynonna said sharply. She opened her mouth to say something much harsher when she realized Alice was standing there watching the adults talk.

“Oh, Wynonna has been many things, but I do not believe she has ever been anyone’s ‘girl,’” Doc said coldly as he pulled his hand back.

Sam blinked and looked between Wynonna and Doc again. He wasn’t a stupid man, and he could tell by the look on Wynonna’s face that he was in trouble.

“Mama, Daddy said we could have a tea party,” Alice said oblivious to the tension between the three adults.

Wynonna forced herself to smile and said, “That sounds like fun. You’re going to be good for your Dad and go to bed when you’re supposed to, right?”

“Right,” the little girl said with a grin.

“Babe we should go, or we’ll be late,” Sam said as he reached out and put a hand on Wynonna’s shoulder. She shrugged it off without looking at him.

“Waverly left a binder with every emergency phone number in existence in the kitchen. I think the nuclear launch codes might be in there,” she said to Doc, “And you have my number, right?”

“I do. We’ll be fine, Wynonna. You both have a pleasant evening,” he said with a less than sincere smile.

“Make her go to bed at a reasonable time, please.” Wynonna squatted down in front of Alice. “And you,” she said to her daughter, “Have fun with your Dad, okay?”

“Okay,” Alice replied.

“Love you, kiddo,” she said as she hugged and kissed the girl.

“Love you too Mama,” Alice replied.

Wynonna straightened up and said, “Call me if you need me,” to Doc, who nodded. She walked past Sam without saying anything and out of the barn. Sam followed her.

“Wynonna…I didn’t mean that” Sam said from behind her just as they exited the barn.

Wynonna turned back to him and held up her hand, “Wait,” she said firmly.

“Let me explain,” he said.

“Wait,” she repeated and started walking towards his truck parked in front of the house. She was going to yell at him, but she wasn’t going to do it within earshot of Alice. When they reached his truck, she turned and glared at him. “I’m your girl?” she asked harshly.

“I didn’t mean it like that,” he said pleadingly.

“Oh, I can’t wait to hear this,” she said sarcastically, “How did you mean it?”

“What do you expect me to say, when I walk in to find my girlfriend cuddling with her ex? You are my girlfriend, right?” The conciliatory tone was gone from his voice, and now he sounded angry as well.

“Not super enthused by that term either, but that’s not what you called me. You called me your ‘girl.’ I’m nobody’s girl, I’m my own damn woman,” she said coldly. “And I have no patience for your jealous bullshit.”

“Is it bullshit when I find you holding each other?”

Wynonna shook her head. “Jesus, Sam, he was giving me a hug.”

“Hell of a hug,” he said dryly.

“Doc and I have been through some shit together. And I never really thought we’d get here,” she said motioning around her, “To a place where it was safe for Alice to be with us.” Hell, a part of her had always thought she’d be dead by now, either killed by a revenant or her own stupid mistakes. “So,” she continued, “I got a little teary over it, and he gave me a damn hug.”

“I’m sorry,” Sam said sounding appropriately cowed, “But I’m not going to lie and say I really like the idea of the woman I’m seeing being that friendly with her ex.”

“Doc was there for me through some dark, dark shit in my life, Sam,” Wynonna said. She could remember his hands guiding her head to his shoulder after she had shot Willa, kissing him after sending Alice away, and him embracing her as she stood next to Dolls’ grave. “He will always be my friend. You can either deal with that, or you can’t. And if you can’t…” she let her voice trail off and shrugged.

Sam looked down and nodded and then looked back at Wynonna. “Okay,” he said.

“Okay?”

“I’ll try to deal with it,” he said, “I’m sorry I was an ass.”

Wynonna wasn’t expecting him to just agree. If she was honest, she was almost hoping he wouldn’t. Righteous anger, hell un-righteous anger too, was her jam, and she was never quite sure how to respond when someone backed down so quickly. 

“Well…okay then,” she said with a shrug.

He smiled and stepped closer to her and put his hands on her shoulders. “Can we just forget this stupid fight and try to go and have a good time?” he asked.

She nodded and gave a half-hearted smile. He grinned back and leaned in and kissed her. She could smell his cologne, it didn’t smell anything like leather, or gun oil, or Doc.

***

She kissed Sam goodbye on the porch later that night. He had suggested they go back to his place for a bit after the party, but she had used concern over Alice as an excuse. It wasn’t entirely untrue, she hadn’t heard from Doc at all during the evening, and she wasn’t quite sure if it was a good thing or bad thing.

She unlocked the front door and went inside. The living room was a mess of toys and crayons strewn around the floor. Doc was also sitting on the couch wearing a purple plastic tiara on his head. 

“What the hell, Doc?” she asked, as she glanced around the room.

Doc put a finger to his lips, shook his head and then pointed to the sleeping little girl on his lap. “She only fell asleep a short while ago.”

Wynonna sighed and shook her head. “What happened to a reasonable bedtime?”

“Well…I mean…I…” he sputtered.

“She’s got you wrapped around her little finger,” she said with a knowing smile.

“That is not true,” he said indignantly.

Wynonna snorted. “Your tiara’s crooked.”

Doc glared and removed the piece of plastic from his head and placed it on the side table next to his actual hat.

“Why didn’t you bring her up to bed?” she asked.

“I feared waking her,” he explained.

Wynonna shook her head and said, “Once she’s really asleep nothing wakes her up.” She walked over to the couch and bent down to pick Alice up.

“May I?” Doc asked, and he moved his hands to scoop Alice up.

Wynonna nodded and watched as Doc picked Alice up and stood. He adjusted her, so her head rested on his shoulder. Then he carried her up the stairs. Wynonna followed closely behind. They didn’t speak as they entered Alice’s room but quietly put the little girl in bed. 

Wynonna watched as Doc gently kissed the girl’s head as he laid her down. Wynonna finished tucking her daughter in and then she motioned for Doc to follow her out of the room. They came to stand on either side of the doorway, watching their daughter sleep.

“We done good when we made her,” Wynonna said with a smile.

“Yes, we did,” he said returning her smile.

Wynonna couldn’t say which one of them kissed the other first. It seemed like they were smiling at each other one moment and their lips were pressed together the next. It didn’t seem like a conscious decision on either one of their parts, it was like some invisible force had pulled them together…like gravity.

She felt one of his hands tangle in her hair while the other gripped her hip and pressed her body against his. She wrapped her arms around his neck and kissed him hungrily. She had almost forgotten how good a kisser Doc Holliday was. How much different kissing him was from kissing virtually any other man…including Sam.

Shit. Sam. She broke the kiss and placed her hands on Doc’s shoulders. They were both breathless, and Doc looked a bit confused. “I’m sorry, I can’t, Doc,” she said. He released his hold on the back of her head and her hip, and she stepped away from him. 

“No need to apologize,” he said, “I am the one that is sorry. I should not have…”

Wynonna shook her head. “I think we both started it,” she paused before continuing, “Sam is a good guy. He doesn’t…he doesn’t deserve this,” she said motioning between the two of them.

“Does he make you happy, Wynonna?” Doc asked looking her right in the eye.

“He doesn’t make me sad,” she said with a shrug. The implication hung between them-you have.

“Is that the same thing?”

“No…but it’s what I can manage…for now,” she explained.

He seemed to consider that for a moment before nodding. “I should take my leave,” he said, “I can show myself out. Goodnight, Wynonna.”

Wynonna closed her eyes and said, “Goodnight, Doc.” She waited to open them again until she heard his feet on the stairs.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So this chapters been a bit late in coming, life got a bit in the way. So, this is probably the penultimate chapter. The story proper will essentially end with the next chapter...there may or may not be a short epilogue afterward, depending on how things go. It will probably be up sometime next week, this week (with the holiday) is a bit busy for me. I really would like to thank everyone who's been reading. And especially for those of you that have commented. This by far the most ambitious thing that I've ever written that I've ever let anyone outside of close friends read, and I'm eternally grateful that people are enjoying it.


	12. Chapter 12

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> After a particularly stressful day, Wynonna must decide what kind of mother she wants to be.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the delay in updating. With the holiday, work and school things have been a bit crazy for me and I appreciate your patience. *Trigger Warning* for implied child abuse for this chapter. I think it's relatively subtle, much in the same vein as the actual show hints about Ward's abusiveness. But I did want to put a warning out there just in case.

Wynonna knocked on Sam’s door. He had called her earlier in the day and asked her to come over. It had been a while since he had invited her over to meet in the afternoon. It had been a while since they had had sex, period and Wynonna couldn’t deny she missed the physical contact. Doc was picking Alice up from school and keeping her for a bit, so Wynonna was free for a couple hours.

Sam answered the door with a smile and said, “Hey there.”

“Hey,” Wynonna replied as she stepped inside. “I only have a little while,” she continued as she leaned up and kissed him.

He gently put his hands on her shoulders and pushed her away. “I have to talk to you about something.”

“Can’t it wait?”

“No…” His voice trailed off, and he turned and wandered into the living room. Wynonna followed him.

“What’s up?” she asked. Whatever it was, it apparently wasn’t good.

“I got a job offer in Vancouver,” he said as he turned back to her.

Wynonna let that wash over her. She had always suspected Sam had bigger aspirations than being a small-town cop for the rest of his career. She just never expected him to jump ship so soon. “And I guess you took it? Or you wouldn’t be telling me.”

“It’s an opportunity I can’t say no to,” he explained.

“You tell Nicole yet?”

“No, I wanted to tell you first,” he said.

“She’s going to be pissed,” Wynonna said with a shrug. That was an understatement. Nicole was going to feel betrayed that she had given Sam a job and he was abandoning it in less than a year. Wynonna wasn’t sure what she felt about it. She would never admit it out loud, but part of her felt relief. She wasn’t going to wind up the bad guy in all of this.

“I expect she is,” Sam said.

“So, you called me over for a goodbye fuck then?” Wynonna asked motioning between the two of them.

Sam frowned and said, “Wynonna, I want you to come with me.”

Wynonna couldn’t help it, she burst out laughing. “You’re joking, right?”

“No,” he said looking annoyed at her amusement, “I want you to come to Vancouver with me.”

“You know that blonde girl that follows me around? About yay high,” she said as she held her hand about waist level, “That’s my daughter.”

Sam shook his head and stepped closer to her and took both her hands in his own. “I want you and Alice to come with me,” he paused and sighed before continuing, “Look, I know that things haven’t been great for the last few weeks, but we were good before that…really good. Before all this other stuff got in the way,” he said with a dismissive shake of his head, “I think we can be good in Vancouver. We can be a family,” he added with a hopeful smile.

Wynonna pulled her hands out of his. She ignored the hurt look in his eyes. “That ‘stuff’ is my life, and I’m sorry it got in the way,” she said sarcastically, “This is my home…this is Alice’s home. Her aunts are here, hell, her father is here. If you think I’d ever take her away from them, you’re crazy.”

“They have these things called cars, and trains, and airplanes,” he said sardonically.

“I told you I’m staked to this land. It’s where I belong,” she said firmly. “It’s where Alice belongs.”

Sam shook his head and stepped back. “Did it ever occur to you that it’s not the healthiest thing to live in the same town…hell, the same house, where you shot your father?” he asked coldly. 

Wynonna glared back at him. His words were like a slap across the face. She hadn’t told him about that night to have it thrown back at her. “You can fuck right off,” she said.

“Not to mention being so goddamn co-dependent on your sister and her wife,” he continued apparently ignoring her.

“You can also take you’re psych 101 bullshit and shove it up your ass, while you're fucking off,” she told him angrily.

“Look,” he said more gently, “All I’m trying to say is you and Alice could be happy…happier outside Purgatory. You can’t just dismiss the idea out of hand.”

“Sure I can,” she said dryly. “I tried running away. It doesn’t work.”

“It’s not running away.”

“It sure seems like it.”

“Building a life with someone isn’t running away. It’s running towards something.” He paused and took a deep breath and then said, “I love you. I want to make a life with you.”

Wynonna knew she should feel something, but she didn’t. “What am I supposed to say to that?” she asked.

Sam shrugged. “That’s plenty, I think.” 

Wynonna could hear the hurt in his voice. She didn’t want to hurt him, but she didn’t love him. “I’m sorry,” was all she could muster.

“It’s okay,” he said with another shrug, “You did warn me. You’re just a MILF with a drinking problem, right?” he said with a sneer.

“That’s right,” Wynonna said with a nod. Maybe that was all she was. Maybe that was all she ever could be.

***  
Wynonna had left Sam’s apartment and drove around for a while. Sam’s words had hurt her more than she would care to admit. She did care about him, but she didn’t love him. Her life would be so much easier if she did.

It was time to pick up Alice. Doc had picked Alice up from school, and the deal was that Alice could hang out with him at Shorty’s until shortly before the bar normally got busy, which was usually happy hour.

Wynonna parked her truck in front of Shorty’s and walked inside. Alice was sitting on the bar, and Doc was standing in front of her. It appeared that Alice was trying to teach him some sort of hand clapping game. Doc stopped and turned as Wynonna entered the bar.

“Wynonna,” he said as a greeting.

“Hey,” she said dismissively before turning her attention on Alice. “Hey, Kiddo, did you have fun with your Dad?”

“Yeah,” the little girl exclaimed.

“Ok, let’s get your stuff and go,” she said.

“I want to stay!” Alice said.

“Some other time, get your stuff Alice,” Wynonna repeated.

“No,” Alice said firmly, “I want to stay with Daddy.”

Wynonna sighed and pinched the bridge of her nose. “I am not in the mood for this Alice. Get your stuff and come on.”

“Alice you should listen to your mother,” Doc said from where he was leaning against the bar. Usually, Wynonna would appreciate that he agreed with her in front of Alice, but for some reason today it just annoyed her that he was butting in.

“But I want to stay!”

“Alice Michelle Earp,” Wynonna said sharply, “Get your crap together and let’s go.”

Alice started to cry. Wynonna sighed heavily and rolled her eyes. She needed Alice to throw a fit like she needed another hole in her head. Doc moved to comfort the girl, but Wynonna held up her hand to stop him. 

“Stop with the crocodile tears Alice,” Wynonna said. The girl didn’t pay much attention to her. Instead, she cried harder. “Alice,” Wynonna repeated, “stop, we have to go.” 

Wynonna knew she should remain calm. She knew that Alice was just being a kid, but she could feel the anger that Alice wasn’t listening to her bubble up. She slapped her hand down on the bar next to Alice hard. It made a sound loud enough to cause the little girl to jump and stop crying. Doc also looked startled. 

“Knock it off,” Wynonna said, “Or I’ll give you something to cry about.” The moment the words left her mouth Wynonna wished she could pluck them out of the air and put them back into her mouth before they could reach Alice’s ears. She hadn’t even meant it. It was a phrase that she had heard enough as a child. In her case, it had usually been followed by Ward’s hand, in fact, giving her something to cry about. But she would never even think about raising her hand to Alice…it still disturbed her how easily that phrase had come out of her mouth.

“Wynonna!” Doc said sharply.

Wynonna looked between him and Alice. Alice looked confused. She probably had no idea what that phrase meant. “I didn’t mean…” Wynonna started to say, but she let her voice trail off.

Doc stepped closer to her and took her by the arm and guided her away from Alice. “I would not normally recommend giving in to the whims of a child, but something appears to be vexing you, Wynonna. Perhaps it would be best for Alice to remain with me for now,” he said softly.

Wynonna was still ashamed of what she had said to Alice, but she was also still angry and looking for a fight. “What is ‘vexing’ me is a kid who won’t listen to me and a baby daddy who won’t back me up,” she said indignantly.

“I think it would be best if Alice stayed here,” he repeated.

“This is a bar, Doc,” Wynonna said motioning around the room, “I have yet to become such a shitty parent that I’m going to let my kid hang out in a bar during happy hour.” She wasn’t entirely sure after what she had said that she wasn’t that shitty of a parent though.

“I will call Nedley and ask him to cover the bar. Alice and I will remain upstairs while there are patrons here, I promise,” Doc said gently, “I think it would be best for both of you.”

“Fine,” Wynonna said as she threw up her hands and rolled her eyes. She just didn’t have the will to argue anymore and to be perfectly honest part of her knew Doc was right. Alice shouldn’t be with her right then…maybe Alice shouldn’t be with her at all. “You have fun trying to get her to brush her teeth and to go to bed,” she said sarcastically then called to Alice, “You want your Dad, you got your Dad.”

“Mama?” the little girl said hesitantly.

Wynonna couldn’t deal with the look on Alice’s face. She turned and walked out of Shorty’s. She ignored Doc’s call asking if she was alright and she tried to ignore Alice’s cries of “Mama,” as well. 

She got in her truck and slammed the door. She beat the heel of her hand repeatedly on the steering wheel while she let out a string of curses. Finally, she took a deep breath and started the truck.   
***  
Wynonna walked into the homestead. The silence in the house was deafening. She had half hoped someone would be home to catch her, but Nicole was at the station and Waverly was at the historical society. 

She walked into the kitchen. She gripped a plain brown bag in her hand. She pulled the bottle out of the bag and placed it on the table and sat down in front of it. The liquid in the bottle glowed a warm golden brown in the afternoon sunlight.

All she really wanted to do was open the whiskey and drink away her shitty, shitty day. Drink away Sam’s words, that if she were honest, hit too close to the truth. Drink away her own words to Alice. Drink away the sounds of Alice’s tears. Open the bottle and drink herself into the pleasant oblivion that she had always retreated to when things got hard in her past.

The truth was Sam was right. She was just a MILF with a drinking problem. She wasn’t the Heir anymore she was just Wynonna. Being the Heir was the only thing in her life she had ever been good at. Being Wynonna, she had always fucked up. She was beginning to think she might be a halfway decent mother, but the day’s events seemed to prove otherwise. She still couldn’t believe the words that had come out of her mouth.

She closed her eyes and took a deep breath and opened them again. The bottle still sat on the table, daring her to drink it. She picked up the bottle and wrapped her hand around the top to break the seal when something caught her eye. A picture Alice had drawn hung on the refrigerator. It was two stick figures one bigger with brown squiggles for hair, the other smaller with yellow squiggles. Next to the two figures was written “Mamma” and “Me” in Alice’s handwriting.

“Fuck,” Wynonna said to no one in particular as she looked from the picture on the refrigerator to the bottle in her hand. 

If she opened it…if she drank it, she would officially be that mother. The one she always feared she would be and the one that little voice in her head always told her she would become. The one that showed up late and drunk and embarrassed Alice at school plays. The one that threatened to hit her daughter for crying. The one who didn’t deserve a kid.

“Fuck!” Wynonna yelled again as she stood and tossed the bottle at the wall. It smashed, and whiskey and bits of shattered glass made an awful mess on both the wall and the floor. Wynonna shook her head and began to laugh at the absurdity of it all, and then her laughter turned to tears, and she covered her face.

She was alternating between maniacal laughter and sobbing when Waverly walked into the room.

“What the…” Waverly started to say as she looked around the kitchen, “Where’s Alice?” she asked abruptly.

“It’s not what you think, Baby Girl,” Wynonna started to explain.

“Where is Alice?” Waverly asked again, there was anger and fear in her voice.

“She’s fine. She’s with Doc,” Wynonna told her sister, “This isn’t what you think.”

“You didn’t smash a whiskey bottle in here?” Waverly asked.

“Okay,” Wynonna said carefully, “Maybe it is what you think. But I didn’t drink it.”

Waverly shook her head and rolled her eyes disbelievingly. Wynonna walked over to where the fragments of the bottle had landed on the floor. Miraculously the neck of the bottle was largely intact. She picked it up and walked to Waverly and held it out.

“Look,” she said, “It’s still sealed.

Waverly frowned as she looked down at the remnant of the bottle. “You bought a bottle of whiskey to smash it?”

Wynonna laughed as she walked over to the sink and dropped the fragment of glass in it. She turned back to her sister and said, “No, I bought it to drink it. I set it right there,” she pointed at the table, “and stared at it for a while and then I smashed it.”

“Why?” Waverly asked.

Wynonna eased herself down, so she was sitting on the floor in front of the sink looking up at her baby sister and shrugged. “Why did I buy it or why did I smash it?”

“Both?”

She swallowed hard. “I had a supremely shitty day, Baby Girl,” she said as she blinked back tears. “And I just wanted to make it go away.”

“Then why did you smash it?” Waverly asked.

“Alice,” Wynonna said then took a deep breath and added, “And for you. Hell, for Nicole and Gus and even Doc. For everybody that thinks I might be a little better than I actually am…But mostly for Alice.”

Waverly walked over to her sister and sat down next to her. She wrapped her arms around Wynonna and held her. “You are better than you think you are,” she said.

Wynonna shook her head as tears streamed down her face and dripped off her nose. “I said things today…to Alice…I sounded like Daddy.”

“You are not Ward Earp, Wynonna,” Waverly said firmly as she wiped the tears from her sister’s cheeks.

“You weren’t there.”

“Whatever you said, you can fix it. You might not be perfect Wynonna, but you wouldn’t have smashed the bottle if you weren’t better than you think you are.”

“Maybe…” And even if she wasn’t, maybe she still could be.

The two sisters sat in silence for a while. Waverly leaned her head against Wynonna’s shoulder, and Wynonna leaned hers against Waverly’s. 

“You couldn’t have just poured this one down the sink, like the last one?” Waverly asked finally.

Wynonna snorted and then began to laugh. Waverly giggled in return. 

“I love you, Baby Girl,” Wynonna said as the laughter subsided.

Waverly pressed a kiss to her sister’s cheek. “I love you too, Wynonna.”

***  
The next morning Wynonna answered a knock at the door. She found Doc standing there with Alice by his side. 

“Mama!” the little girl cried out as Wynonna opened the door.

“Hey, Kiddo,” Wynonna said as she bent down an opened her arms. Alice ran into them, and Wynonna picked her up and squeezed her tightly.

“I’m sorry I didn’t listen, Mama,” Alice said.

“It’s okay, Alice. Look we’re going to talk about it later okay?” Wynonna said as she set her daughter back down.

“Okay,” Alice said.

“I think Aunt Waverly is making pancakes. Why don’t you go check, while I talk to your Dad?”

“Okay,” Alice said again, and she ran off in the direction of the kitchen.

“Good morning, Wynonna,” Doc said with a smile and a tip of his hat.

“Thanks for bringing her back,” she said.

“My pleasure,” he replied.

“She was okay for you?”

“She was fine. She was mostly upset that she upset you,” he explained.

“Shit,” Wynonna said softly.

“Are you all right?” he asked gently.

“Yeah…I mean as good as I get anyway,” she said with a smile and a shrug. “Look,” she continued as she looked down at the floor, “Thanks for you know…keeping me from…” she let her voice trail off then added, “For keeping her overnight.”

“We are both Alice’s parents. The way I figure is that makes us partners. I am here when you need me to be…. for whatever you need.”

Wynonna nodded. “Thanks,” she smiled and then added, “Waverly is making pancakes. They’re vegan, so they’re disgusting. You want to come in and have some?”

“How could I resist such an offer?” he said with a smile.

***  
Alice scampered ahead of Wynonna with her arms held out wide making airplane noises. After breakfast, Wynonna had decided to take Alice for a walk so she could talk to her. She still had no idea what she was going to say.

They reached a rocky outcropping. It was the same spot she had told Doc Alice’s name. Seemed like as good a place as any.

“Alice,” Wynonna called out to her daughter as she sat down on the rocks, “Come sit with me for a minute.”

“Okay,” the girl replied as she ran over to her mother and climbed up on the rocks.

Wynonna took a deep breath and blew it out. “Alice, we got to talk about yesterday.”

“I’m sorry I was bad, Mama,” Alice said quickly. “Daddy said I should have listened to you.”

Wynonna shook her head and turned, so she was facing Alice. “No, Kiddo,” she said as she tried to blink back tears, “You’re a kid. It’s your job to drive me crazy sometimes. Sometimes you’re not going to listen, and it’s okay. What isn’t okay is how I talked to you and that I just walked out.”

“Daddy said you needed to blow off steam. I don’t know what that means.”

“When grownups get angry sometimes, they need to be alone so they can calm down.”

“I’m sorry I made you angry,” Alice said again.

“I told you, it’s not your fault. I had a bad day before I even came to pick you up and I took it out on you, and that isn’t right.”

“What happened?” Alice asked.

“Sam is going to leave town,” Wynonna explained.

“Is he coming back?”

“I don’t think so,” Wynonna said and then added, “Did you like Sam?”

Alice shrugged. “He was okay. I like Daddy better.”

Wynonna laughed. From the mouths of babes often comes the truth.

She stroked her daughter’s hair. “The point is, Alice, that I’m sorry. This mom thing is still kind of new for me, and I wasn’t a good mom yesterday. I screwed up, Kiddo,” Wynonna said her voice thick with emotion.

“You’re the best Mama in the world,” Alice said seriously. Wynonna almost laughed, but then it dawned on her that for Alice it was true. For Alice, Wynonna wasn’t crazy Wynonna Earp, she wasn’t a fuck up, hell, she wasn’t even the Heir. She was just her Mama. 

Wynonna leaned forward and kissed Alice’s forehead. Maybe one day she could live up to what Alice thought she was. “I’m working on it,” she said softly, then more clearly, “I promise I’m going to try and do better, okay, Kiddo?”

“Okay,” Alice said.

“Do you have any idea how much I love you?” Wynonna asked.

“A whole bunch?” Alice said with a giggle.

Wynonna slipped her hands underneath Alice’s arms and lifted the girl into her lap. “I love you more than anything,” she said as she hugged the little girl.

Alice wrapped her arms around her mother’s neck and hugged her back. “I love you too, Mama.”

Wynonna blinked back tears again. In the grand scheme of things, that was all that really mattered. That Alice loved her, that Alice trusted her and believed in her. Wynonna swore to herself that she would deserve it. Wynonna might not be perfect, and she never would be, but she could do better for her daughter…for Alice.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you once again for reading. Everyone who has left comments or kudos are awesome. I know I said this would be the last chapter...but it was beginning to get a bit unwieldy in terms of length if I continued so, there will be one more chapter to wrap things up. The update for that one should be much sooner than it was for this one.
> 
> Once again I thank everyone who's taken the time to read this. This is by far and away the most ambitious thing that I have written in a very long time that I have let anyone besides close friends read. I am deeply appreciative that it has been well received.


	13. Chapter 13

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Wynonna finds some closure with Sam and makes decisions about her future.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well, this took far longer for me to post then it had any right to. The previous chapter probably could have served as the ending, but I did always have this chapter in mind as the ending I did want to tie up loose plot threads. I do apologize for the delay. Some health issues lead into the holidays and then work and school took my complete focus for a while. I'm hoping to have a bit more time to write in the near future, as I still do have plans to write a sequel of sorts to this, focusing on Waverly and Nicole.
> 
> For everyone who commented and left kudos, thank you. Thank you for being patient with the updates. Thank you for taking the time to read and especially those who took the time to comment.

Wynonna rounded the corner in the police station and bumped directly into a blue-clad figure carrying a bunch of files. The papers fluttered to the floor, and she mumbled sorry and bent down to help pick them up.

“No, no, I’m sorry,” the figure said as they bent down as well, and Wynonna realized it was Sam.

They hadn’t spoken since the fight. Wynonna had learned from Nicole that Sam had officially handed in his notice at the PPD, but she hadn’t been sure when his last day was. She had known there had been a risk of running into him when she went to the station, but part of her had almost wanted to run into him. It didn’t feel right the way things had ended between them. 

“Oh…um…hi,” Sam said as he realized it was Wynonna.

“Hey,” she said as she handed the files she picked up back to him.

“How are you?”

“Over the crying and eating ice cream out of the tub phase of our breakup, obviously,” she said sarcastically.

“I didn’t mean it like that,” he replied.

“I’m fine,” she said more seriously.

“I’m glad,” he said with a nod. 

An awkward silence hung between them. Wynonna broke it by asking, “So when’s your last day?”

“Friday.”

“That’s quick.”

“Sherriff Haught thought it would be best if I left town sooner rather than later, so she didn’t make me give much notice.” He almost managed to keep the sourness out of his voice. 

Wynonna knew that Nicole was pissed that Sam was leaving. She was even more angry about it after she had learned about Wynonna and the whiskey bottle. Even though it was hardly fair to blame him for Wynonna’s mistake, Nicole seemed hell-bent on blaming him anyway.

“Sorry,” Wynonna told him.

“It’s okay,” he paused and cleared his throat, “Look, I’m actually glad I ran into you. I didn’t want to call and upset you, but I did want to tell you how sorry I was…I was out of line.”

“Yeah, you were a total dick,” Wynonna said, then added, “But you weren’t completely wrong either. I’m sorry too.”

Sam gave a sad smile. “I really do love you, you know?”

“I know…I wish it were enough.” Wynonna really did wish that. Part of her wished that she loved Sam…that she loved him enough to take Alice and leave Purgatory behind. In many ways, it would make her life so much easier.

“I don’t want to be that guy,” he said sheepishly as he looked down at the floor, “But was I just a good time or what?”

Wynonna considered it for a moment before she spoke. “Before Alice, I was Wynonna Earp. Waverly once called me whiskey soaked and reckless, and she wasn’t wrong. Then I became Alice’s mom, and I lost all that, mostly for the better…but when I met you it proved I could still be a little bit Wynonna and Alice’s mom at the same time. It wasn’t just a good time, it was more than that. You helped me find a little bit of myself I had lost. Thank you.”

Sam smiled and nodded. “You’re welcome.”

“You’ll meet someone, Sam, that doesn’t come with quite the amount of baggage I do,” Wynonna said then added wryly, “She won’t be as good in bed as me, but you have to make sacrifices.”

Sam laughed. “I am going to miss you. I’m glad we ran into each other. It didn’t feel right ending things like we did.”

“Yeah,” Wynonna said. “Take care of yourself, Sam.”

“You too, Wynonna.” He turned and started to walk away before turning back. “I can’t believe I’m saying this because you kind of broke my heart, but I do kind of like the idea of you remembering me as the bigger man…I don’t know what happened between you and Doc, but anyone can see there’s still something between the two of you…plus you have a kid together. Maybe it’s worth another try?”

“It’s not that simple,” Wynonna replied.

“Nothing good, ever is,” he said then smiled, “Goodbye, Wynonna.”

***

The weeks past and Wynonna and Doc fell in an odd yet comfortable co-parenting routine. Doc was a surprisingly good dad. He even volunteered to read to Alice’s class. Although he had apparently nearly given Miss Peterson a heart attack when he showed up with a six-inch bowie knife on his hip. He had shrugged and explained that he had left his six-shooters at the bar. Wynonna would have paid money to see the woman’s face, but unfortunately, Wynonna had been working a case, and Nicole had picked Alice up that day. 

It was apparently for the best since Nicole had managed to smooth things over. But Doc would not be helping in class for the rest of the year. 

Wynonna and Doc had fallen back into their old pattern of flirting and innuendo around each other. Neither had brought up Sam’s leaving, but the fact that Wynonna was single hung between them.

If Wynonna were braver, she would say something or do something. She had something approximating a normal relationship with Sam, and even though she hadn’t really loved him, part of her missed it. And as much shit as she gave Waverly and Nicole, she had to admit to herself that part of her wanted what they had-someone to come home to, someone to kiss goodnight. One of Wynonna’s biggest fears was that would be all to conventional for Doc. So they continued their dance around each other.

As the weather warmed, Waverly planned a barbeque and invited Jeremy and Robin as well as Mercedes and Chrissy Nedly and her father. Robin and Jeremy came over early in the day, and Robin thought it would be a great idea to go for a hike. Wynonna had tried to get out of it, but Alice seemed excited and wanted Wynonna there, so Wynonna found herself traipsing through the woods. She had made Doc come with them as well, though he appeared as enthused about the expedition as she was.

Robin had managed to get them lost twice, though thankfully Nicole seemed to know the area well enough to get them back on the correct path. Alice seemed utterly oblivious to any issues and ran around the adults with boundless energy. 

Wynonna and Doc trailed behind the rest of the pack. Wynonna watched the two couples as they walked up the trail. Jeremy kept reassuring Robin that he was doing a good job leading the group. Nicole and Waverly walked hand in hand.

“They’re all disgustingly cute aren’t they?” Wynonna said casually to Doc.

“Indeed,” he said then paused before adding, “I was sorry to hear of the leaving of Officer Donovan.”

“I wasn’t fishing, Doc,” Wynonna said. She honestly hadn’t been. 

“I did not think you were…I am sorry none the less.”

Wynonna glanced to make sure Alice was far ahead enough that she couldn’t hear before saying, “Bullshit, you hated his guts.”

“I will admit to being less than fond of the man, but I am sorry if you are sorry, Wynonna.”

Wynonna closed her eyes. No one said her name quite the way Doc did…she doubted that anyone ever would. 

Wynonna Earp had faced down revenants, demons, giant man-eating spiders, and immortal witches. At the very least she could be brave enough to tell Doc Fucking Holliday how she felt about him and what she wanted. 

She stopped walking and took a deep breath and said, “Can we talk?” 

“Of course,” he replied as he stopped by her side.

“Hey, we’ll catch up in a minute,” Wynonna called out to the rest of the group.

They stopped and turned to look at Wynonna. 

“Everything okay?” Waverly asked.

“Yeah,” Wynonna said, “We’ll be right behind you. Alice stay with your aunts.”

“Okay,” Alice said and happily began skipping down the path.

“Are you sure everything’s okay?” Waverly repeated.

“Fine,” Wynonna said.

“Alright,” Waverly said as she and the rest of the group started up the path, “Just don’t get too far behind.”

Wynonna nodded and then waited for the group to disappear around a bend before turning to Doc.

“Wynonna, is everything alright?” He asked.

“Yeah…yeah, I’ve just been thinking about life a lot lately.”

“I don’t understand,” he said with a shake of his head.

“I never really thought I’d break the Curse you know. I figured it would kill me like it had killed every other Heir. So part of me never really thought about what I’d want out of life after it ended because I didn’t think I’d be around for that.” She paused and looked up into Doc’s eyes. He still looked confused. “When the Curse was over part of me felt rudderless because I never thought I’d have a life that didn’t involve killing revenants. Then Alice came home,” she smiled, “and then all I could think about was her. Now that things have settled, I’ve had to think about what I want for me.”

“I’m still not sure I follow, Wynonna.”

“I want you, Doc. I want us. I want what Waverly and Nicole have…Okay maybe not quite as sickening as Waverly and Nicole, but I don’t want to do this dance we do anymore. I want a real life. Just want you.”

He smiled and laughed. “You are thick, woman, aren’t you?”

“You’re laughing at me, great,” she said with a roll of her eyes. 

He reached up and pushed a strand of hair behind her ear and then his hand lingered on her cheek. “Wynonna you already have me. You have always had me. However you want me, you have me. You have had me since very shortly after we met. I have lived more lives than any man should. If I lived another ten lifetimes, I doubt I would ever meet someone quite like you, Darling.”

“What does that mean?”

“It means, Wynonna Earp I love you. I love our daughter. I want nothing more than to have a life with you.”

Wynonna blinked back tears that threatened to fall from her eyes. “I love you too, Doc.” 

He smiled again and removed his hat before kissing her. 

***  
The flickers of the orange flames reflected in Wynonna’s eyes. Alice’s shrieks of laughter rang through the air. The little girl ran around the firepit as Robin playfully chased her.

Nicole and Waverly stood their arms wrapped around each other’s waists as they chatted with Mercedes, Chrissy, and Nedley. Jeremy attempted to grill something he had described as “vegan sausage” on a small cheap charcoal grill a short distance away.

Wynonna felt a hand fall on her thigh. She turned toward Doc, who was seated next to her near the firepit and smiled. He smiled slyly back. They hadn’t mentioned anything about what they had talked about on the trail when they had finally caught up with the group. Although Waverly had commented on Wynonna’s hair being mussed.

Waverly decided to glance over at Wynonna and Doc at that moment. She raised her eyebrows when she noticed Doc’s hand. It was hardly inappropriate but still too far of an intimate gesture to be purely platonic. Wynonna merely shrugged at Waverly who seemed slightly flustered but turned back to play hostess.

Alice ran over and jumped on Wynonna’s lap. Wynonna let out an oomph as her daughter jumped on her. 

“Hi, Mamma,” the little girl said with a grin.

“Hi there kiddo,” Wynonna said with a smile, “You have fun today?”

“Yeah, I like the woods.”

She looked down at her daughter and smiled. Alice’s eyes seemed to glow as blue in the faint light as Peacemaker ever had. Alice settled on her lap and she wrapped her arms around her daughter as she stared into the flames that danced before them. 

Wynonna had always thought that ending the Curse would be the end of her story. Part of her had half expected to flick out of existence when the Curse ended. She could never imagine that it would only be the beginning of a whole new story. One that she finally got to be the author of. She glanced between Alice and Doc. She was looking forward to writing it.

 

Yes the strong seem to get more  
While the weak ones fade  
Empty pockets don't  
Ever make the grade  
As mama may have  
And papa may have  
God bless' the child  
That's got his own  
That's got his own.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So that's all folks. It's funny when I started this story, I saw Alice as the titular child. Upon finishing I think the lyrics are more applicable to Wynonna. I hope the ending was worth the wait (I'm sure it wasn't). I did really want to tie up the loose plot threads of Wynonna's relationships with Sam and Doc. I intended Sam to be a good guy who just ultimately wasn't compatible with Wynonna. I hope that came across. As I said I do plan to write a follow piece to this, but I make no promises about when it will be coming. Thank you again for everyone who took the time to read.

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks as always for reading. I wanted to write this because I read some great fics with Alice home and Wynonna as a good mom. But while I think she'll get there I imagined her transition wouldn't be so smooth and would be stressful for all involved. And I wanted to explore that a bit. Alice will be making an appearance in subsequent chapters that will hopefully be up soon. This is obviously set in the future and I was intentionally vague about how the curse was finally broken. We'll see how much this diverges with the show's canon as the third season wraps up. Thanks in advance to anyone who leaves a comment.


End file.
